Category: Markets
Asian shares slide as investors ponder stimulus outlook
July 5 (Reuters) – Asian shares snapped a five-day winning streak on Tuesday as investors took stock of a rally driven by hopes that central banks will provide more stimulus to offset a likely downturn triggered by Brexit. MSCI’s broadest index of Asia-Pacific shares outside Japan fell 0.7 percent, but was still within reach of […]
Asia shares fall, bonds surge as Brexit fears resurface
July 6 (Reuters) – Asian share markets turned tail on Wednesday as fears over instability in the European Union returned with a vengeance, sending the pound to three-decade lows and hammering risk assets of all stripes. Concerns about the impact on already fragile global growth spread to commodity markets where oil prices were buckling […]
Asian stocks recoup losses, Aussie wobbles on uncertain election
July 4 (Reuters) – Asian shares shrugged off early losses and edged higher on Monday, while the Australian dollar was under pressure after no clear winner emerged from a weekend election. Activity across much of the region was subdued ahead of the U.S. Independence Day holiday, when financial and commodity markets will be closed. Investors also continued […]
Sri Lanka faces huge debt service requirements by July & Sept
July 01, 2016 (LBO) – Sri Lanka’s external debt service requirements are expected to be relatively larger in July and September of this year as per the estimates for the remaining period, the Finance Ministry said. Releasing the mid-year fiscal position report, the ministry said the total estimated debt service payment for 2016 is 1638.7 […]
Asia stocks rise as risk appetite recovers, pound under fresh pressure
July 1 (Reuters) – Asian stocks rose on Friday as risk appetite continued to recover from last week’s Brexit shock, but the pound came under renewed pressure after the Bank of England’s governor hinted at an interest rate cut ahead. MSCI’s broadest index of Asia-Pacific shares outside Japan rose 0.4 percent. The index has recovered nearly all the […]
FTSE recovers Brexit losses, Brent crude down 1.2-pct
June 30 (LBO) – Asia stocks rose across the board on Thursday, tracking an overnight rally on Wall Street, while the safe-haven Japanese yen stopped rising as global markets bet Brexit won’t get implemented immediately. Michael Hewson, chief market analyst at CMC Markets, said investors had been reassured by hopes that Britain’s EU exit wouldn’t […]
‘s Amana Takaful Life announces IPO of Rs75Mn
June 28, 2016 (LBO) – Amana Takaful Life Limited (ATLL), a fully-owned subsidiary of Amana Takaful PLC, has announced an Initial Public Offering (IPO), via an offer for sale of 75 million rupees. ATLL becomes the first segregated life insurer in Sri Lanka to do so following the mandatory segregation of Life and General insurance […]
Brexit vote, UK political confusion keep world and asian markets on edge
June 28 (Reuters) – Britain’s vote to leave the European Union continued to reverberate through financial markets, with the pound falling to its lowest level in 31 years, despite government attempts to relieve some of the confusion about the political and economic outlook. UK finance minister George Osborne said early Monday that the British […]
Sri Lanka’s Central Bank keeps policy rates steady
June 24, 2016 (LBO) – Sri Lanka’s Central Bank has decided to keep its key interest rates steady for a fourth straight month on Friday, despite rising inflation and high private sector credit growth. The full text of the statement is reproduced below. Monetary Policy Review – June 2016 According to provisional estimates of the […]
‘t seek reappointment until probe over
June 24, 2016 (LBO) – Sri Lanka’s Central Bank Governor Arjuna Mahendran has informed the Monetary Board that he will not seek a re-appointment when his term ends this month until a parliamentary probe over bond sales is complete. The Central Bank in a press release said he would not seek re-appointment until “the Parliamentary […]
Asia stocks, sterling rise as Brexit anxiety abates
June 23 (Reuters) – Asian shares edged up and sterling stood close to its peak for the year on Thursday, as investors were cautiously optimistic that British voters would opt to remain in the European Union at a referendum later in the session. Two opinion polls published late on Wednesday, a few hours before […]
Oil prices above USD50, buoyed by U.S. stock draw
June 22 (Reuters) – Oil prices rose in early Asian trading on Wednesday, with U.S. crude joining Brent above $50 a barrel after data from the American Petroleum Institute (API) showed a larger than expected draw on stocks. U.S. crude futures’ August contract, the new front month from Wednesday, had climbed 35 cents to $50.20 […]