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Plantation shares on the rise at the bourse

20 Jul 2022

  • Depreciating rupee boosts share value despite fertiliser shortage, says analyst
  • Horana, Agalawatte, Hapugastenne, Kotagala shares witness double-digit gains
    By Imesh Ranasinghe  Plantation shares at the Colombo Stock Exchange (CSE) were on the rise on Tuesday (19) with the depreciation of the rupee and fertiliser shortages yielding low production, as the CSE recorded a turnover passing Rs 1 billion for the second consecutive market day. The All Share Price Index (ASPI) gained by 107.51 (1.43%) to 7,644.12 from the previous day's close of 7,536.61, and the S&P SL20 gained by 51.03 (2.11%) to 2,474.11 from its previous close of 2,423.08. A total of 66.7 million shares were traded within the day with a turnover of Rs 1.1 billion, after Rs 1.4 billion in turnover was recorded on Monday (18). Speaking to The Morning Business, First Capital Head of Research for Investments, Fixed Income, and Equity Dimantha Mathew said that plantation prices have significantly gained in value with the rupee depreciation despite low production due to the fertiliser shortage. “The rupee has significantly depreciated in value, so to represent the previous dollar value, plantation shares are gradually moving up in value,” he said, adding that shortage in our tea market is also slightly pushing the price up. Accordingly, the gain in plantation shares could be seen across the boards: Hapugastenne Plantations PLC (HAPU) gained by 22.01% (Rs 6.80) Kotagala Plantations PLC (KOTA) gained by 20% (Rs 0.90), Horana Plantations PLC (HOPL) gained by 13.45% (Rs 3.20), Agalawatte Plantations PLC (AGAL) gained by 10.06% (Rs 3.40), Tea Smallholder Factories PLC (TSML) gained by 9.43% (Rs 3.00), Dapussellawa Plantations PLC (UDPL) gained by 9.26% (Rs 4.00) and Talawakelle Tea Estates PLC (TPL) gained by 8.45% (Rs 5.50). According to Asia Siyaka Commodities PLC, tea production in Sri Lanka hit a 23-year low in June at 20.1 million kg, a 22% reduction on a year-on-year basis from 26 million kg.


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