Author: lbostgadmin
Country at Crossroads
Broader and deeper structural reforms in the last two years gave the economy a boost together with progress in peace talks.Central bank governor A S Jayawardene told LBR in an interview that the resilient Lankan economy could post double the current growth if permanent peace is achieved. Following are excerpts of the interview.rn Shamindra Kulamannage: […]
Nordic Battles
Norway is seeking to jumpstart Sri Lankas stalled peace talks, but faces a challenge to bridge a “gulf of confidence” between the new government and Tamil rebels, diplomats said Wednesday.Norways foreign minister Jan Petersen is to arrive here this weekend for talks with President Chandrika Kumaratunga and top Tamil Tiger rebel Velupillai Prabhakaran to discuss […]
Cost of Life
Twenty five per cent of Sri Lankan households now have some form of motorized transport up from 15 per cent in 1996. 28 percent have refrigerators, up from 16 per cent.Television usage had gone up to 68 per cent.The latest consumer finance survey by the Central Bank shows a big jump in living standards around […]
Insurance or Hazard
Following the failure of Pramuka Bank, the Central Bank is looking again at the concept of deposit insurance. This years annual report talks of a financial safety net that exists to protect depositors.Deposit insurance is part of the safety net. Prudential regulation and supervision is the foundation of the financial safety net.A good regulatory framework […]
Can the Central Hold?
Central Bank has been bringing down their policy rates in the last two years to encourage local investment. However they say that bank-lending rates have not come down proportionately. rnThere is a big difference between the interest charged on a loan and interest paid on deposits at any commercial bank in the country.rn This difference […]
Freedom Day
Police raided a Tamil journalists home in Colombo Monday night, asrnjournalists around the world celebrated World Press Freedom Day.rnrnThe journalist, Sivaram Dharmeratnam writes the popular lquote Taraki, Tamil affairs column for The Daily Mirror, and also contributes to several Tamil publications. At the time of the raid, only his wife and children were in the […]
Reverse Gear
The Finance Minister toned down talk of increased spending and a bigger budget deficit, as financial market players expressed concern about the possible economic fall out. rnThe minister pledged policy continuity and said he will keep a close eye on the deficit while emphasizing the need to meet the government revenue targets.rn rnExperts say the […]
Growing Pains
Central Bank says the economy will grow at 5.5 percent this year if fiscal discipline is maintained.rnrn Governor A.S.Jayawardene said that ceasefire and strict fiscal discipline helped boost growth to 5.9 percent in 2003 while other economic indicators also improved.rn rnInitially predicted GDP growth rate for 2004 was six percent. However the Central Bank has […]
VAT an Act!
The government is expected to amend the Value Added Tax Act to legalize the introduction single tax rate despite opposition to the amendments on political platforms. The combined rate for VAT has been effective since the beginning of the year but the amendments to the Act are yet to be approved by parliament.rn rnExperts say […]
Soft Stand
Sri Lankas Tamil Tigers told Norwegian peace brokers Monday they were willing to resume talks based on their plan for self-rule, but warned the new government here not to support renegade rebels.rn The Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam (LTTE) told a top Norwegian envoy the rebels were ready to open negotiations with the Sri Lankan […]
Sinhala Code
Ensuring the life of the Sinhalese language in the computers era, a fresh draft font standard is now in circulation for public comment. This proposed standard provides a coding of the set of Sinhala characters for use in computer and communication.rn rnThis standard character code set specifies a 7-bit code table (out of 16 bits […]
Stinging Response
Sri Lankan authorities Monday sought divine intervention to calm a colony of venomous wasps who stung more than 200 tourists at the fifth-century rock fortress of Sigiriya, a World Heritage Site.Cultural ministry officials said they offered alms and cash to gods at the foot of the 180-metre (600-foot) fortress, 160 kilometres (100 miles) north of […]