Category: Economy

Aug 09, 2011 (LBO) – Sri Lanka’s state revenues rose 19. 7 percent to 358.3 billion rupees in the five months to May 2011 in line with an annual targeted rate of 17. 8 percent and expenses rose 5.4 percent to 417.1 billion rupees, official data showed. But there was still a gap between current […]

HONG KONG , August 9, 2011 (AFP) – Asian stock markets plunged further Tuesday, deepening sharp losses brought on by the historic credit downgrade of the United States and the debt crisis in Europe. As gold soared to record levels and crude oil prices fell, Asian stocks tumbled despite G7 and G20 pledges to bolster […]

PARIS, August 7, 2011 (AFP) – The week on financial markets began with high tension over the eurozone debt crisis and culminated in a downgrading of the US credit rating. Attention focused on the outlook for the US and EU economies, and the eurozone lurched deeper into crisis which now affects even core countries. The […]

WASHINGTON, August 7, 2011 (AFP) – Standard & Poor’s decision to strip the United States of its triple-A credit rating is a tough but logical sanction of the country’s inability to contain its spiraling debt, experts say. S&P slashed the US rating for the first time in history Friday from its sterling AAA to AA+, […]

Aug 06, 2011 (LBO) – The long term credit rating of the United States of America has been downgraded by one notch to AA + with a negative outlook by Standard & Poors, a rating agency. Unless rulers cut spending as agreed with the congress, the rating agency said it may further downgrade US government […]

Aug 06, 2011 (LBO) – The long term credit rating of the United States of America has been downgraded by one notch to AA + with a negative outlook by Standard & Poors, a rating agency, which said policy making has become less ‘stable’. At higher levels in the rating scale, policy takes on a […]

July 29, 2011 (LBO) – Consumer inflation in Sri Lanka’s capital Colombo accelerated to 7.5 percent in July from 7.1 percent in June, with prices rising 0.4 percent during the month, the government’s statistics office said. Non-food items in the basket rose 1.4 percent and food and non-alcoholic beverages fell 0.8 percent. Sri Lanka’s inflation […]

July 29, 2011 (LBO) – Sri Lanka’s Brown & Company, which claims market leadership in agricultural tractors, said it expected sales of around 1,000 units in the next six months with 45 percent coming from former war-torn areas. Sri Lanka Insurance chief executive Mohan de Alwis said the firm was looking to expand its insurance […]

July 29, 2011 (LBO) – Hundreds of deaf Sri Lankans took to the streets on Friday demanding equal rights and more people to translate sign language so they can have better access to medical and other services. The peaceful march in Colombo ended after the organisers were allowed to walk to Sri Lankan President Mahinda […]

July 26, 2011 (LBO) – Sri Lanka’s foreign reserves would be close to eight billion US dollars after proceeds from a billion dollar sovereign bond comes to the country, Central Bank Governor Nivard Cabraal said. The balance is expected to be disbursed in two tranches after reviews in September and March. By end May Sri […]

July 26, 2011 (LBO) – Sri Lanka should keep inflation below 7. 0 percent to ensure economic stability Treasury Secretary P B Jayasundera said, as lower levels of inflation may be beyond the capacity of economic policies to deliver. Additional inflation is created by central bank credit, such as liquidity facilities given to banks or […]

WASHINGTON, July 22, 2011 (AFP) – A US congressional committee voted Thursday to ban aid to Sri Lanka unless the nation shows “accountability” over the bloodshed in the final stages of its civil war in 2009. In a voice vote, the House Foreign Affairs Committee approved a measure that would ban all US government funding […]