November 9, 2018 (LBO) – Foreign selling of Sri Lanka’s stocks and bonds continued at a brisk pace in the second full week of Sri Lanka’s constitutional crisis.

Net foreign selling of government securities was Rs9.9bn for the week, while net foreign selling of equities was Rs3.9bn.

In the previous week the figures were strikingly similar with a net Rs10.9bn coming out of the bond market and Rs3.8bn coming out of the stock market.

Since the start of the constitutional crisis a total of Rs28.5bn (US$165mn) has fled Sri Lanka’s stock and bond markets.

If the crisis continues to drag on, analysts have said to expect further outflows from Sri Lanka’s capital markets. They have warned that if the crisis is not resolved amicably, there could be significant capital flight as well as trade ramifications. Debt refinancing could also get see significant disruption. “A financial crisis is possible” one said.

Year to date over Rs130bn has fled Sri Lanka’s capital markets, a key contributor to weakness in the Sri Lanka Rupee in 2018.