Category: Economy and Markets
Poor Show
Sri Lanka may fall short of achieving a projected six percent growth this year, as politicking keeps investors at bay, Finance Minister K N Choksy said.Despite political jitters post November 11, the country notched a 5.6 percent growth last year, in line with Central Banks expectations, Choksy said.rn rnBut a snap parliamentary poll in April, […]
Sisyphus Speaking
A top business leader called on the business community to exert pressure on governments to deliver and be held accountable.Joint business forum Chairman Mahendra Amarasuriya said it is time the private sector started playing a significant role in steering policy and insisting on performance from politicians addressing the 8th LBR LBO CEO Forum last week.rn […]
Are They Clueless?
Lack of long-term planning since independence and intense party politics have kept Sri Lanka from developing faster, a top private sector personality said on Thursday.The LBO-LBR CEO forum on Thursday saw some of the countrys leading business figures mull over a number of challenges facing the private sector put before them by the keynote speaker […]
Chivalry Not Dead
A state bank rode into the foreign exchange markets once again on Thursday to champion the currency and prevent it from touching the 100.00 rupee mark against the US dollar.The rupee opened at 99.15 and stealthily rose to hit an all time mid-day high of 99.35 against the greenback.rn rnBut state run Bank of Ceylon […]
Confused Signals
Top trade chambers say Tuesdays meeting with the PA-JVP alliance has failed to shed any light on how they plan to manage the economy.The newly formed JVP-PA alliance talked of promoting a mixed economy with a ban on importing unessential goods.rn rnBusinessmen, instead, were left with many pointed questions like progress in a gamut of […]
Righteous Vote
The monks will be pitted against minority Tamils, who are mainly Hindus and also want to hold the balance of power after the April 2 election called by President Chandrika Kumaratunga nearly four years ahead of schedule.rn rn The majority Sinhalese community, which is mainly Buddhist, is divided down the middle between two coalition parties […]
Grand Slam
Sri Lankas Prime Minister has accused the countrys president of jeopardising a ceasefire with Tamil rebels and scuttling economic recovery in his first public address since his government was sacked 10 days ago. “The presidents action has jeopardised the ceasefire agreement. The economy has suffered a severe blow,” Prime Minister Ranil Wickremesinghe said in his […]
Money Matters
Three-month treasury yields continued to surge upwards as the market becomes uneasy over the upcoming April polls.The Central Bank offered and accepted Rs.6.462 bn worth of bills at Tuesdays auction, though the market sent in bids for Rs.11.065 bn, the Central Bank said.rn rnThe weighted average yield rate for three-month paper rose eight basis points […]
Get Going
The four co-chairs of peace have expressed disappointment over the current political situation and repeated their call on the Sri Lankan government to resume peace talks. The co-chairs turned down a government request to de-link the peace element from the aid package, in the light of the current political situation and a breakdown in peace […]
Alliance Calling
Wooing support for its ticket to govern the country, the newly formed SLFP-JVP alliance flirted with the Colombo based business and international community on Tuesday. The gala two-hour PR campaign, the first major public appearance since the alliance was signed in late January was mooted to ally fears of an anti-private sector regime in the […]
Saffron Power
Nationalist party, Sihala Urumaya said Tuesday that it was exclusively fielding Buddhist monks to contest the 225 seats up for grabs at snap parliamentary elections.rnThe Party said it will bank on saffron power for the April 2 elections called by President Chandrika Kumaratunga after she dissolved parliament nearly four years ahead of schedule on February […]
No Brakes
The rupee slipped up against the US dollar to end at 99.15, despite a state bank selling some dollars to shore up the currency.The rupee opened at 99.25, before the intervention brought it down to 98.90. Dealers said there was heavy import demand, on slim volumes.rn rnDealers said Bank of Ceylon had sold some dollars […]