Sri Lankan share index recovered on Wednesday after hitting over 18-month lows in the previous session, as investors picked up battered banking and telecommunications shares, brokers said. The bourse had lost 5.22 percent so far this year through Tuesday's close on concerns over investors shifting to risk-free assets such as government securities due to rising yields amid global worries.

The main stock index ended up 0.31 percent, or 20.02 points, at 6,554.37, edging up from the lowest close since July 7, 2014 hit on Tuesday. The index had fallen in the last seven consecutive sessions. "We were expecting this after massive fall as investors picked up some battered big cap shares. But the market might further come down especially with continued foreign selling due to global concerns," said Yohan Samarakkody, head of research, SC Securities (Pvt) Ltd.

Copyright Reuters, 2016