All Blogs
Sri Lankan should flag social issues creatively: Bangladesh photo activist
Feb 28, 2012 (LB) – Bangladesh photographer, activist and social entrepreneur Shahidul Alam, challenged Sri Lankans to think creatively to flag social issues that grips the developing world. Driven by largely autocratic governments, developing nations like Sri Lanka battle veiled censorship, subtle military rule and commercial pressure that often suppress unsavoury topics. “Don’t let those […]
Sri Lanka may see tyranny of markets to be worse than IMF, World Bank
Feb 28, 2012 (LBO) – The pain imposed by the tyranny of markets could be much greater than adjustments caused by the International Monetary Fund or World Bank, an economist has warned. The Ceylon Electricity Board, which had to generate large amounts of thermal power from the second quarter of 2011 due to failed rains […]
Sri Lanka rupee trades weaker
Feb 27, 2012 (LBO) – Sri Lanka rupee was quoted as low as 121. 05/121.25 levels against the spot US dollar in intra-day trade Monday after opening at around Friday’s close of 119. 90/120.20 dealers said. Analysts have called for rates to be allowed to move up, to keep the exchange rate steady. Update II […]
Sri Lanka shares end down 1.6-pct
Feb 27, 2012 (LBO) – Sri Lankan share prices fell Monday, ending a seven-day rally, with turnover also lower and sharp fluctuations in some illiquid stocks, brokers said. The main All Share Price Index closed down 1.61 percent (89.71 points) at 5,476.59, while the more liquid Milanka index fell 1.03 percent (49.39 points) to close […]
Income Gains
Feb 27, 2012 (LBO) – Sri Lanka’s National Development Bank (NDB) said December 2011 quarter net profit shot up 69 percent to almost a billion rupees with a sharp increase seen in other income and lower tax costs. A note to the accounts said NDB provided 165 million rupees during the year ended December 31, […]
Credit Trends
Feb 27, 2012 (LBO) – Loans to business from Sri Lanka’s commercial banks rose 34.5 percent to 2,005.9 billion rupees in the year to December 2011, with credit to the state hitting a new monthly high, official data showed. Credit to business in December remained at a high 60.2 billion rupees in December 2011, slightly […]
Sri Lanka state airline losses financed by petroleum retailer: report
Feb 27, 2012 (LBO) – Sri Lanka’s loss making state-run airlines have been mainly financed by Ceylon Petroleum Corporation, to which they owe 18 billion rupees (150 million dollars) in unpaid dues for fuel, a media report said. Losses for the current year so far at Mihin Air, a state-budget carrier are not known but […]
Sri Lanka exports top US$10bn, record growth in 2011
Feb 27, 2012 (LBO) – Sri Lanka’s exports topped 10 billion US dollars in 2011 growing at above 20 percent, a threshold achieved only on eight occasions since 1951, which exporters have reached for two years running. Sri Lanka’s exporters have shipped 10,486.9 billion US dollars worth goods in 2011, up 22.4 percent from a […]
Sri Lanka commercial forex loan repayments pile up: report
Feb 26, 2012 (LBO) – Sri Lanka is planning to raise 600 million dollars in commercial debt from the local market in 2012 mostly to roll over existing debt a media report said, not counting a 500 million dollar sovereign bond that also falls due this year. Sri Lanka’s balance of payments had come under […]
Adani group to invest $6b in overseas expansion
MUMBAI, (Asia Pulse) – India’s diversified Adani Group said it will invest US$6 billion in overseas expansion by 2015, mainly in Australian mining and related assets. “We will be investing US billion into our overseas assets (spread in Australia and Indonesia) by 2015,” group Chairman Gautam Adani told reporters here after unveiling a new corporate […]