Category: Economy
Gold reserves down by 54-pct in December; USD 3.1bn reserves include Chinese swap: CBSL
Sri Lanka’s official reserve assets were 3.1 billion US dollars (USD 3,137.6 mn) by the end of December, up from 1.6 billion US dollars in November, the latest Central Bank data showed. Accordingly, the official reserves include the swap facility signed with the People’s Bank of China (PBoC) of RMB 10 billion (equivalent to approximately […]
Daraz reinvents: A new perspective for SL’s e-commerce
Daraz is entering a new phase of its journey towards creating exceptional user experiences and developing a digitized ecosystem. Embarking on an exciting initiative to relaunch its brand, Daraz hopes to reaffirm its position in the lives of e-commerce users across the region. Alongside tech leaders across the globe, Daraz hopes to add a new […]
National single window: Paving way for paperless trade
By Mithara Fonseka and Kavishka Indraratna In 2016, Sri Lanka ratified its Trade Facilitation Agreement (TFA) with the WTO and in 2017 a Secretariat was established for the National Trade Facilitation Committee to drive much needed trade reforms in the country. Currently, the rate of Sri Lanka’s implementation commitments under TFA stands at 34.9% with […]
15-pct food price increase in a single month; Advocata
Advocata’s Bath Curry Indicator (BCI) , which tracks the monthly changes in the retail price of food, recorded an increase of 15% from November 2021 to December 2021. Much of this increase is driven by rising prices of vegetables. 100g of Green Chillies at Rs18 increased to Rs 71. This is a 287% increase in […]
‘s Foreign Minister
Trade and investment, political cooperation, defense initiatives, tourism and labour issues dominated the discussion in Seoul, Republic of Korea between Sri Lankan Foreign Minister Prof. G. L. Peiris and Minister of Foreign Affairs of the Republic of Korea Chung Eui-yong. Minister Prof. Peiris paid tribute to the multi-faceted relationship which had developed between the two countries during their 44-year relationship, and its present robust character. Minister Peiris […]
Opinion: Government heavy-handedness to blame for our currency woes
By Vinuja Singharachchige: Much is being said nowadays about the pressures the Sri Lankan Rupee is facing, but it is important that we understand the mechanics and greater economic context. Currency crises have been common in our modern history with countries facing sudden devaluations to the point where we can predict the patterns. There was […]
‘s Finance Minister introduces relief package
Finance Minister Basil Rajapaksa on Monday announced a relief package for different sectors in Sri Lanka. Complete Cabinet Decision: 2022 Economy and Outlook The budget for the year 2022 has been approved by the parliament and commenced to effect from 01 of January 2022 and the Minister of Finance submitted the following information on the […]
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written by Migara Rodrigo Sri Lanka has a whopping 527 state-owned enterprises[1] (SOEs). The 55 SOEs classified as “strategically important” alone employ 10% of the public sector workforce[2], or about 1.9% of all workers. Such a large number of SOEs are not the norm globally[3]; many other countries (such as India) have been reducing their […]
Sri Lanka is swept away by an economic tsunami as a result of mismanagement by a family: Eran
Sri Lanka is the only country in the world amidst the Covid pandemic that has faced unprecedented price increases, gas and fuel shortages, and a dangerously low foreign reserve position. Even the countries in the Asian region have recorded a positive GDP growth, FDI, and foreign reserves said Eran Wickramaratne MP at a press conference […]
Joint Chambers express concern on impact of currency shortage; request to engage with IMF
Statement issued by the following Institutions: We wish to draw the attention of the Government to the difficulties faced by our member companies and the broader private sector in obtaining foreign currency to finance much needed imports due to the prevailing situation with regard to the lack of availability of foreign currency. This will affect […]
‘s exports expected to surpass USD 12bn by end 2021; records USD 1.2bn in November
Sri Lanka’s merchandise exports increased by 55.11% to US$ 1,215.6 Million in November 2021 compared to November 2020 as per the data released by the Sri Lanka Customs. Exports maintained above one billion dollars for the fifth consecutive month in November this year. EDB Chairman & CE, Suresh D. de Mel said, “Sri Lanka’s exports […]
Sri Lanka headline inflation increased to 11.1-pct in November
Headline inflation, as measured by the year-on-year (Y-o-Y) change in the National Consumer Price Index, increased to 11.1 percent in November 2021 from 8.3 percent in October 2021 driven by monthly increases of prices of items in both Food and Non-food categories. Subsequently, Food inflation (Y-o-Y) increased to 16.9 percent in November 2021 from 11.7 […]