Category: Economy and Markets
Sri Lanka fiscal management critical for managing inflation: think tank
Oct 03, 2008 (LBO) – Sri Lanka’s government spending policies, and foreign borrowings are key to keeping inflation down though tight monetary policy can bring short term results, a think tank has said. To receive instant alerts from LBO on your Dialog mobile type ‘lbo’ and send to 678 “Whilst a sharp drop in credit […]
Sri Lanka forex market steady with intervention
Oct 03, 2008 (LBO) – Sri Lanka’s forex markets entered a second day of intervention with a state bank that usually acts for the monetary authority selling dollars at 108.00 rupees, dealers said. Central Bank governor Nivard Cabraal told LBO that the state bank “could continue to sell” if required. On Thursday the forex market […]
Sri Lanka shares hold their ground
Oct 02, 2008 (LBO) – Sri Lankan shares ended several days of falls to close marginally firmer Thursday but on very small volumes with investors still cautious owing to uncertainty in the global and local economy, brokers said. Lanka Cement closed up 25 cents at 11.25 with 124,100 shares traded. The company’s stock has been […]
Sri Lanka rupee up after opening on state intervention
Oct 02, 2008 (LBO) – The Sri Lanka rupee which opened at 108.20/35 against the greenback gained ground amid official intervention, with a state bank which usually acts for the central bank selling dollars at 108.00 rupees, dealers said. Meanwhile money markets remained tight with the overnight call rates at 19.00/19.50 percent levels and market […]
Sri Lanka port mulls hedging yen loans to avoid forex losses
Oct 02, 2008 (LBO) – The Sri Lanka Ports Authority (SLPA) is considering hedging its yen loans after suffering losses owing to currency fluctuations, its acting chairman Priyath Bandu Wickrema said. The SLPA is heavily overstaffed because successive governments have recruited supporters to gain votes. To receive instant alerts from LBO on your Dialog mobile […]
Sri Lanka central bank says money targets achieved amid reserve outflow
Oct 01, 2008 (LBO) – Sri Lanka’s central bank said it had achieved reserve money targets set for the September quarter amid a reserve outflow that has made it increase domestically injected liquidity to maintain reserve money. Such actions, characteristic of maintaining a pegged exchange rate, known as ‘sterilized intervention’ can easily stampede a country […]
Sri Lanka rupee breaks peg as monetary authority steps back
Sept 30, 2008 (LBO) – Sri Lanka’s rupee broke its peg at 107.90 and spiked to 108.35 rupees against the green back on Tuesday after the monetary authority ended a week of heavy intervention that saw more than 100 million dollars flow out of the country. Sri Lanka’s central bank has intervened heavily in currency […]
Sri Lanka 12-month inflation falls in September
Sept 30, 2008 (LBO) – Consumer prices in Sri Lanka’s capital Colombo increased by 24.3 percent in the 12-months to September 2008, down from 24.9 percent in August, the government’s statistics office said. The census department said food prices fell by 0.2 percent while fuel, household maintenance, transport and recreation showed an increased. The central […]
Sri Lanka bond markets illiquid after rate spike
Sept 30, 2008 (LBO) – Trading in Sri Lanka’s bond markets dried up Tuesday as market participants took stock of a sudden spike in rates at an auction a day earlier, amidst turmoil in international markets, dealers said.The government sold a bond maturing in July 2012 at 19.09 percent on Monday, up steeply from an […]
Sri Lanka central bank rejects all bids at auction
Sept 30, 2008 (LBO) – Sri Lanka’s central bank rejected an entire Treasury Bill auction on Tuesday bringing back memories of dark days in June 2007 when two auctions were absorbed by the central bank, and the country was plunged into a currency crisis soon after. The central bank was however in the market later […]
Sri Lankan stocks continue to tumble
Sept 29, 2008 (LBO) – Sri Lankan stocks lost more than one percent in lackluster trading Monday as market heavyweights like Dialog Telekom, Commercial Bank and NDB tumbled amidst weak investor participation, brokers said. To receive instant alerts from LBO on your Dialog mobile type ‘lbo’ and send to 678 The All Share Price Index […]
UN says will restart Sri Lanka food aid
COLOMBO, September 28, 2008 (AFP) – The United Nations said on Sunday it would send food to those displaced by fighting in Sri Lanka’s rebel-held north, two weeks after aid workers were ordered out of the region. Sri Lankan forces are moving to dismantle the northern stronghold of the rebels, formally known as the Liberation […]