South Asia need freer trade to have food security: policy advocate

July 5, 2013 (LBO) – South Asian countries could improve food security by avoiding export restrictions in food and increases in overall trade will also help reduce poverty, a regional policy advocate said.Banning exports of food to neighboring countries and the rest of the world whenever prices go up should be avoided, Bipul Chatterjee, deputy […]

More Sri Lankan boat people returned by Australia

July 05, 2013 (LBO) – Australia has returned 15 more Sri Lankan boat people taking the total sent back so far to 1,285, an Australian government statement said.Of those returned 1,072 were sent back involuntarily. The statement said the sending back boat people sent a “powerful message” and they were wasting money to travel to […]

Sri Lanka urban housing eyed by UAE firm: industries ministry

July 05, 2013 (LBO) – Midein Holding Llc, an Abu Dhabi based firm is looking at urban housing development in Sri Lanka, the ministry of industry and commerce said.Omair S Al Dhaheri, chairman of Midein Holding had visited Colombo and has had talks with deputy investment promotion minister Faiser Mustapha and chairman of the state […]

‘s Mihin Lanka gets Rs600mn in state guaranteed loans

July 5, 2013 (LBO) – Sri Lanka’s state-run Mihin Lanka, a loss-making budget carrier has been given 616 million rupees in Treasury guarantee to borrow from a state bank, finance ministry data shows. Separately the Treasury had guaranteed a 175 million US dollar-equivalent loan (22.54 billion rupees) from Mashreq Bank in UAE until June 2016. […]

Sri Lanka stocks down 0.4-pct

July 05, 2013 (LBO) – Sri Lanka’s stocks closed down 0.41 percent on Friday with the market down for the third consecutive day amid losses in diversified companies and banking stocks, brokers said. The Lion Brewery closed at 399.00 down 09.00 rupees and Distilleries Company closed at 190.70 rupees down 1.80 rupees. The benchmark Colombo […]

NEW DELHI, 2013 (AFP) – India’s state-run banks will open 10,000 branches this year as part of a drive to extend formal financial services to the estimated 40 percent of the country without them, a minister said Wednesday.Spreading banking services is a key part of the government’s new cash transfer programme, that sees welfare beneficiaries […]

Sri Lanka state dairy firm financed by HSBC

July 04, 2013 (LBO) – Sri Lanka’s state-run Milco (Pvt) Ltd, a dairy products firm, is modernizing it factories with a 5.5 billion rupee credit structured by UK’s HSBC banking group, a finance ministry report showed. Milco markets and sells ‘Highland’ branded milk powder, liquid milk, ice cream and cheese. HSBC has previously helped channel […]

Sri Lanka stocks down 0.7-pct

July 04, 2013 (LBO) – Sri Lanka’s stocks closed down 0.73 percent on Thursday with losses in diversified companies and banking stocks, brokers said. Distilleries Company closed flat at 192.50 rupees and Ceylon Tobacco Company closed at 995.70 rupees down 3.80 rupees. Trading Thursday Sri Lanka stocks down 0.7-pct July 04, 2013 (LBO) – Sri […]

‘s outlook downgrade

July 03, 2013 (LBO) – Sri Lanka’s central bank has disputed a cut in the outlook to stable from positive on the island’s ‘B1’ sovereign rating saying it is “backward looking” and not a proper reflection of the external position and recent improvements in the economy. Moody’s cut the outlook saying external bank borrowings had […]

Sri Lanka interim budget data revealed according to law: opposition

July 03, 2013 (LBO) – Sri Lanka’s finance ministry has revealed budget data conforming to a fiscal responsibility law for the first time in years, opposition legislator Harsha de Silva has said. De Silva had also charged that changes to the fiscal responsibility law to allow the central government to increase the limit on guarantees […]

China top Sri Lanka top lender up to April 2013, Japan follows

July 03, 2013 (LBO) – China has given 165.28 million US dollars for projects financed in Sri Lanka in the first four month of 2013, though Japan has committed more new funding in the period, official data show. The World Bank has disbursed 95.7 million US dollars (0.84 million in grants) in the period, coming […]

Sri Lanka income taxes collections up following lower rates

July 03, 2013 (LBO) – Sri Lanka’s income tax collection have risen sharply in the first few months of the year, despite a slowing economy after rates were brought down as part of tax reforms in 2011, according to a finance ministry report.The finance ministry said it reflected “a favourable consolidation of the impact of […]

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