Author: lbostgadmin
Sri Lanka rupee looks for direction, amid rate cut
April 22, 2009 (LBO) – The Sri Lanka rupee edged lower but recovered before hitting a psychological 120.00 level against the greenback, Wednesday with some exporters taking profits, dealers said.The rupee opened wide at 118.75/119.25 a day after the central bank talked up the rupee, weakening towards 119.65/120.00 and recovering to 119.00/119.10 levels later in […]
Sri Lanka Treasury bill yields fall after rate cut
April 22, 2009 (LBO) – Yields at the weekly Treasury bill auction plunged across the board with the 12-month yield falling 100 basis points to 15.40 percent, the government’s debt office said, after a 175 basis point rate cut earlier in the day.The 6-month yield fell 98 basis points to 14.90 percent and the 3-month […]
US says clock ticking for Sri Lanka solution
WASHINGTON, April 21, 2009 (AFP) – A US official warned on Monday that time was running out for a deal that he hoped would bring lasting peace to Sri Lanka as he pressed for both sides to halt the fighting.Sri Lankan authorities set a deadline of midday (0630 GMT) Tuesday for the surrender of Tamil […]
Sri Lanka takes more territory from Tigers: ministry
April 21, 2009 (AFP) – The Sri Lankan army on Tuesday captured more territory from the Tamil Tigers ahead of the expiry of a government deadline for the rebels to surrender, the defence ministry said.The defence ministry has given Tiger supremo Velupillai Prabhakaran and his fighters until 0630 GMT Tuesday to surrender. Advancing government troops […]
Sri Lanka Tigers ignore deadline to surrender
April 21, 2009 (AFP) – The Sri Lankan army on Tuesday seized more territory from the Tamil Tigers as the rebels ignored a government deadline to surrender, the defence ministry said. The attack saw government forces effectively slice the last small strip of jungle held by the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam (LTTE) in two, […]
Record Gulf remittances bleak comfort for Pakistan
KARACHI, April 21, 2009 (AFP) – Pakistani expatriate workers wired home a record 739.4 million dollars last month, but experts warn job losses from the global credit crunch could soon slash remittances and rock the economy.Pakistanis working overseas sent 5.66 billion dollars home during the first nine months to March 31, 20 percent up on […]
Sri Lanka rubber regains bounce
April 21, 2009 (LBO) – Sri Lankan rubber prices have bounced back as demand picks up and tapping slows down during the off-season, industry officials said. “So rubber manufacturing companies have got new orders as a result of which they have to buy the natural rubber raw materials from producers. “Also, supply is now lower […]
Sri Lanka tourist arrivals down 10.5 pct in March
Apr 21, 2009 (LBO) – Tourist arrivals to Sri Lankan fell 10.5 percent to 34,065 for the month of March 2009, with key Western European and South Asian markets weakening, the tourism promotion office said. The number of tourists from the all-important western European market, the lifeblood of beach resorts, fell by 5.2 percent to […]
Safety Rope
April 21, 2009 (LBO) – Low transaction costs and timely delivery is critical for micro-finance to be effective in lifting poor people out of poverty, a senior Sri Lankan central bank official said.“Experience tells us that micro-finance alone is not enough to eliminate poverty because it only satisfies the funding needs of micro enterprises,” central […]
Sri Lanka stocks driven up by banking sector
Apr 21, 2009 (LBO) – Sri Lankan shares continued their positive run Tuesday, led by banking stocks with investors upbeat that the three-decade ethnic war would be soon over, brokers said. Foreign buying was at 25.7 million rupees, while foreign selling amounted to 95.4 million. Conglomerate John Keells Holdings, which has business interest in finance, […]
Sri Lanka foreign reserves US$1.36bn in February; rupee opens weaker
April 21, 2009 (LBO) – Sri Lanka’s gross foreign reserves in February 2009 were 1,369 million US dollars down from 1,415 million US dollars in January, the central bank said as the rupee opened weaker.The rupee opened weaker at 117.60/90 against the US dollar in spot trade Tuesday, dealers said, and was later quoted at […]
Sri Lanka IMF loan finalized within days: Central Bank Governor
April 21, 2009 (LBO) – The final touches to an International Monetary Fund loan would be wrapped up within days and the first tranche is expected in less than three weeks, Central Bank governor Nivard Cabraal said. “Within two weeks or three weeks at the most, the first tranche of the IMF facility will come,” […]