Category: Economy and Markets
Asia stocks under pressure as dollar hovers near 14-year high
HONG KONG, Nov 15 (Reuters) – The U.S. dollar hovered near on a 14-year high on Tuesday and Treasury yields extended their rise as investors braced for higher inflation in the United States amid expectations of fiscally expansionary polices under Donald Trump’s presidency. The combination of the two have derailed Asian currencies and equities, […]
Sri Lanka foreign reserves drop by USD395mn in Oct: Central Bank
Nov 11, 2016 (LBO) – Sri Lanka’s official reserves dropped 394.6 million US dollars to 6.1 billion dollars in October, down from 6.5 billion dollars at the end of September, official Central Bank data showed. Foreign currency reserves were 5.1 billion US dollars and reserves in Gold were 0.91 billion US dollars. Central Bank has […]
Sri Lanka to introduce new law protecting foreign reserves
Nov 11, 2016 (LBO) – Sri Lanka has proposed to introduce a new Foreign Exchange Act to protect foreign reserves from irregular transactions. Finance Minister Ravi Karunanayake told Parliament yesterday that the current Exchange Control Act will be repealed for this purpose. An Investment Inflow Management Act will be introduced to facilitate the inward remittance […]
Sri Lankan rupee weaker as regional currencies drop
Nov 11, 2016 (Reuters) – The Sri Lankan rupee edged down on Friday, in line with a selloff in emerging market currencies, as investors feared higher U.S. interest rates under incoming President Donald Trump will spark capital outflows from those markets. The weakness in the rupee followed Sri Lanka’s budget proposals on Thursday to revise […]
Education a priority, free tablets for students: Budget
Nov 11, 2016 (LBO) – Sri Lanka will prioritize education and give free tablet computers to students and teachers in 2017, the government said in budget proposals for next year. Almost 175,000 A Level students and 28,000 teachers will receive tablet computers in 2017, for which five billion rupees has been allocated. Sri Lanka has […]
Sri Lanka budget 2017: tax and revenue proposals
Nov 11, 2016 (LBO) – Finance Minister Ravi Karunanayake in his Budget 2017 speech in parliament Thursday proposed several measures to improve government revenue. “To increase the direct tax component to 40 percent from around 20 percent at present and gradually reduce the indirect taxes to 60 percent from around 80 percent in the medium term,” […]
Asian shares dip, soaring US bond yields rattle emerging markets
TOKYO, Nov 11 (Reuters) – Asian shares dipped while the dollar strengthened broadly on Friday as U.S. bond yields soared on expectations U.S. President-elect Donald Trump’s policies would stoke inflation. MSCI’s broadest index of Asia-Pacific shares outside Japan fell 0.2 percent, with Korean shares off 0.5 percent. Australian shares eked out small gains of 0.1 […]
Sri Lanka targets 4.6-pct budget deficit for 2017: Ravi
Nov 10, 2016 (LBO) – Sri Lanka’s government unveiled its budget for 2017 that aimed to cut the budget deficit while increasing spending on education, health and infrastructure. The government expects a 4.6 percent budget deficit in 2017, down from 5.4 percent for this year, the finance minister said presenting the 2017 budget. Total revenue […]
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Sri Lanka to list Mobitel, Hyatt other state enterprises: Budget 2017
Nov 10, 2016 (LBO) – Sri Lanka’s Finance Minister Ravi Karunanayake said several state-owned enterprises such as Mobitel, Hyatt, Waters Edge, Grand Oriental Hotel will be listed on the Colombo Stock Exchange. The firms are to be listed during 2017, he said presenting budget proposals for 2017. “We will also list non-strategic enterprises such as […]
Budget 2017 *** Live Coverage ***
* Finance Minister concludes budget speech * Committee of private and public sector to ensure budget implementation * Corporate income tax to be revised to a 3-tier structure 14%, 28% and 40%. WHT increased from 10% to 14% * Tax incentive for exporting of vehicles * Income tax to be streamlined * Reduce indirect taxes […]
Sri Lanka economy expected to grow 6.3-pct in 2017: CB
Nov 10, 2016 (LBO) –Sri Lanka’s economic growth is likely to be around 5 to 5.5 percent this year and expected to increase to 6.3 percent in 2017 and to grow further thereafter at an annual rate of 7 percent or above, the Central Bank said. Releasing its half yearly publication, ‘Recent Economic Developments: Highlights […]