Sri Lanka’s stock exchange adopts global classification standard
Dec 03, 2015 (LBO) – Sri Lanka’s Colombo Stock Exchange (CSE) said it is adopting the Global Industry Classification Standard (GICS) to classify its listed companies along with S&P/CSE cobranded sector indices.
The Global Industry Classification Standard (GICS®) was jointly developed by Standard & Poor's and MSCI Barra to meet the global financial community's need for one complete, consistent set of global sector and industry definitions, the CSE said in a statement.
"The world's leading financial professionals across all investment disciplines, including asset managers, institutional investors, consultants, and researchers have adopted GICS as the classification standard.”
The CSE intends to consider GICS as an alternative classification of companies for a pilot period of one year during which period the current classification would also be maintained alongside the proposed GICS, the statement said.
This will provide adequate time for the stakeholders to be comfortable with GICS facilitating a smooth transition. The pilot period commenced on Dec 02, 2015 and the classification of companies with market data can be accessed through www.cse.lk.
“We believe that the adoption of GICS by CSE is very important step for sector investing and portfolio diversification,” Vajira Kulatilaka, chairman of CSE said.
This globally accepted standard not only will enable foreign investors to analyze the sector diversity of the Sri Lankan equity market but also local investors to truly diversify, added Rajeeva Bandaranaike, chief executive of the CSE.
“We are sure that the decision to adopt GICS would enhance the market infrastructure and help the investors to better understand the characteristics and change of industry structure.”
The gradual implementation of the project will help smooth transition from the existing classification to GICS.” Alka Banerjee, managing director, head of Equity Indices Product Management, S&P Dow Jones Indices said commenting on the occasion.
”We are proud to be extending a very successful and strong relationship with the CSE, and look forward to being a part of the Sri Lankan equity market growth journey.”
Global standards my foot. With not a single stock-market criminal been successfully prosecuted how do they plan to encourage ,besides global investors, our own investors in a prolonged approach to justice. The old saying, they can tell it to the marines, or garland the fraudsters. Look at the participation all these few years, with all the announcement for a better governance, it has and is languishing at around Rs. 1 bn. average turnover per day. No more excuses lets see those responsible for justice have the guts to do so.
smj
I agree with sacre blieu. The CSE authorities,rogues,crooks & politicians all trying to escape. The middle class investors in the past are still starving. Until justice is done CSE will not gain trust.
Making this change requires two teams of professionals. The first to study the criteria governing the global classification system. The second to translate data provided by local listed entities into data that meets these criteria and assign appropriate categories to these listed entities. I SEE NO SIGN OF EITHER OF THESE TWO and I doubt we have the required human resources locally. Neither the minister of finance nor the head of the CSE appears willing to address this requirement. SRI LANKA WILL BE JUDGED NOT BY ITS STATED INTENTIONS AND PROMISES BUT BY ITS ACTIONS. The years of bluff and bluster that passed as MAHINDA CHINTHANA and that seems to have served as a smokescreen for gross abuse of power and brazen plunder of public funds with continuing impunity have yet to be brought to an end and the trends it gave rise to reversed. More bluff and bluster will not help. IT WILL ONLY LEAD TO A LOSS OF CONFIDENCE AND CREDIBILITY.