Category: Economy

March 30, 2007 (LBO) – The gap between petrol and diesel prices in Sri Lanka has widened further overnight with a hike of 7 rupees a litre by state owned Ceylon Petroleum Corporation with the second player Lanka IOC following suit. The retail prices of a litre of 90-Octane petrol is now 104 rupees, 95-Octane […]

March 30, 2007 (LBO) – Sri Lanka’s Central Bank said Friday it had met its targets for first quarter reserve money expansion, a sign that it had the ability to control raging inflation. Central Bank governor Ajith Nivard Cabraal said it had maintained its first quarter target for reserve money growth of 254 billion rupee […]

March 30, 2007 (LBO) – Sri Lankan President Mahinda Rajapakse Friday called for increased productivity and efficiency in both the state and private sector to sustain the momentum of economic growth which hit record levels last year. The growth of 7.4 percent achieved last year despite many challenges proved the validity of the government’s defence […]

March 29, 2007 (LBO) – Sri Lanka grew by a blistering 7.7 percent in 2006, which is the highest on record, the country’s statistics office said Thursday. The Department of Census and Statistics said agriculture grew by 6.1 percent, industry by 8.4 percent and services by 7.8 percent. “We are encouraged to see that all […]

March 27, 2007 (AFP) – Sri Lankan authorities are struggling to restore investor confidence a day after Tamil Tiger rebels launched an audacious air attack that stunned the defence establishment, officials said. The two sides agreed to a Norwegian-arranged truce in 2002, but successive talks broke down. Tamil Tiger rebels carried out their first air […]

March 27, 2007 (LBO) – Sri Lanka’s state investment promotion body which runs industrial parks said they were not affected by a Tamil Tiger air raid, including one near the targeted air base. The Board of Investment (BOI) runs two large industrial parks in Katunayake near the airport and in Biyagama as well as a […]

March 27, 2007 (LBO) – Sri Lanka needs more monetary tightening and a smaller budget deficit to improve its economic fundamentals and bring inflation down, the Asian Development Bank (ADB) said Tuesday. We do think monetary policy would have to be tightened further, ADB Country Economist Johanna Boestel said. The Central Bank can succeed in […]

March 27, 2007 (LBO) – Sri Lanka would offer an immediate 20 percent bonus in stationary for kids who break their piggy banks and deposit the coins in the banking system, officials said. “If children break their piggy banks and bring the coins back to circulation we will give exercise books, pens and rulers to […]

March 26, 2007 (AFP) – The first ever air attack by Tamil Tiger rebels is a psychological setback to Sri Lanka’s military but could cause an even bigger blow to the island’s economy, analysts said Monday.In the daring strike, the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam (LTTE) used two light fixed-wing aircraft against the Katunayake airbase, […]

March 23, 2007 (AFP) – Japan gave Sri Lanka a 320-million-dollar loan Friday to build roads and improve drinking water supply in key cities, the Japanese embassy here said.More than 4,000 people have died since December 2005 in fighting between Tamil rebels and government forces despite a Norwegian-brokered truce that has been in place since […]

March 22 (LBO) – Sri Lanka and India will hold another round of trade talks in Colombo next week on liberalizing professional services, investments and trade in goods. The talks on a Comprehensive Economic Partnership Agreement or CEPA, has been ongoing for three years, to widen trade to include areas like professional services. The two […]

March 16 (LBO) – Sri Lanka’s central bank kept its now largely irrelevant discount rate unchanged Friday, while its monetary policy actions in recent weeks showed a firm reliance on quantity targeting. The release of the next regular statement on monetary policy is scheduled for 11 April 2007. Update 2 (graphics/reserve money targets) Though the […]