Category: Economy and Markets
‘s only Dangerous Goods Storage Facility
May 14, 2019 (LBO) – Sri Lanka’s first, and South Asia’s most advanced, Dangerous Goods Storage Facility (DGSF) was commissioned on Friday, 10th May at the Colombo International Container Terminal (CICT) equipping the Port of Colombo with a sophisticated storage yard for cargo classified under the International Maritime Dangerous Goods (IMDG) Code. An investment of […]
IMF approves extension & USD164mn disbursement; grants waivers to Sri Lanka for performance criteria
May 14, 2019 (LBO) – The Executive Board of the International Monetary Fund has completed the fifth review of Sri Lanka’s economic performance under the program supported by an extended arrangement under the Extended Fund Facility (EFF). Completion of this review, upon the granting of waivers of nonobservance for the end‑December 2018 performance criteria on […]
Foreigners flee Sri Lankan bonds with Rs11bn outflows this week
May 10, 2019 (LBO) – Foreign institutional selling of Sri Lanka’s government bonds picked up pace in the past week with approximately Rs11bn (US$60mn) of net outflows. Total foreign investor holdings of Sri Lankan government bonds has now reached multiyear lows, with total foreign holdings at just over US0mn.The fallout from the Easter Sunday terror […]
Rs.1.36Bn takeover of People’s Merchant Finance by Sterling Capital
May 09, 2019 (LBO) – Sterling Capital Investments has completed a 1.36 billion rupee takeover of People’s Merchant Finance (PMF), a statement said.The take over happened through a private placement of shares and a rights issue giving Sterling Capital a stake of 67.9 percent in People’s Merchant Finance, a company filling at the Colombo Stock Exchange […]
Govt announces debt relief for tourism sector
May 08, 2019 (LBO) – Sri Lanka’s government and cabinet yesterday gave a heads up for a ‘relief package’ to strengthen the tourism industry affected by the Easter Sunday attacks. “The Central Bank is now in the process of issuing circulars in this regard to banks,” State Minister for Finance Eran Wickramaratne told reporters in […]
Sri Lanka allows duty free import of security equipment
May 08, 2019 (LBO) – State Minister of Finance Eran Wickramaratne announced the Government has decided to waive of duty on the import of of latest security equipment.“This is a decision taken to help not only travel and tourism but State institutions, private sector, schools and hospitals so that they can strengthen their security after the attacks,” he […]
SriLankan Airlines appoints a new CCO and CFO
May 07, 2019 (LBO) – SriLankan Airlines has appointed Joshua Bustos as its chief commercial officer and Shaminda Samaraweera as its chief financial officer with effect from April this year. Bustos is an internationally experienced senior level airline executive with over 20 years of experience. He has held several key positions in leading organizations including American […]
Sri Lanka tourist arrivals decline 7.5- pct in Apr 2019 : Q1 up 2.2-pct
May 07, 2019 (LBO) – Sri Lanka’s tourist arrivals declined 7.5 percent during April 2019, latest data from the Tourisum Ministry show. However, a growth of 2.2 percent was shown in the 1st quarter compared to 2018. The total number of international tourist arrivals to Sri Lanka during April 2019 was 166,975.In comparison to April […]
EFL 3PL looks towards Bots and RPA to stay ahead of logistics game
May 06, 2019 (LBO) – Expolanka Freight (Pvt) Ltd. (EFL), a logistics service provider announced that it has implemented its first wave of transformative Robotic Process Automation (RPA) across all its distribution centers and freeport to support day-to-day operations. Through this move to automate repetitive processes across its portfolio, the country’s most dynamic supply chain […]
‘s ordinary technology, US politicians exaggerated its role: Huawei
May 06, 2019 (LBO) – Huawei Technologies Co. founder Ren Zhengfei recently pointed out that 5G is not that powerful and is just an ordinary technology, whilst United States politicians have exaggerated its role, only to call people’s attention to the 5G technology. “There is basically no Huawei equipment in the US networks. If networks are […]
‘s rupee weak as foreigners exit bonds after Easter Sunday terror
May 5, 2019 (LBO) – Money has started to flee Sri Lanka’s bond markets in the aftermath of the devastating ISIS inspired Easter Sunday terrorist attacks. A net of close to US$20mn has exited from Sri Lanka’s government bond market in the past week. Before the attacks, Sri Lanka was starting to see more positive […]
‘s private sector opposes SLPA tariff hike at this juncture
May 04, 2019 (LBO) – Sri Lanka’s private sector firms have strongly opposed the unilateral decision by the Sri Lanka Ports Authority (SLPA) to increase port tariffs.In a joint statement, the private sector representatives involved in the import-export business said the opposition to the tariff hike is based on several reasons. “Amongst them is the […]