Category: Industry
Finance Rating
May 22, 2013 (LBO) – Melsta Regal Finance Ltd, a unit of Distilleries Company of Sri Lanka has been rated ‘A+(lka) by Fitch Ratings, on the strength of its ‘AAA(lka)’ rated ultimate parent. The full statement is reproduced below: Fitch Rates Sri Lanka’s Melsta Regal Finance ‘A+(lka)’/Stable Fitch Ratings-Colombo-21 May 2013: Fitch Ratings has assigned […]
Stable Rating
May 21, 2013 (LBO) – Fitch Ratings said an ‘AA-(lka)’ rating of Sri Lanka’s Hatton National Bank has been confirmed with a stable outlook and the bank has slowed pawning advances as gold prices fell. It also confirmed an ‘A+(lka)’ rating of HNB’s subordinated debentures of 6.0 billion rupees. “HNB’s ratings reflect its strong domestic […]
Sri Lanka unit of Allianz says profits, written premium up
May 20, 2013 (LBO) – Allianz Lanka, a unit of Germany’s Allianz insurance group said pre-tax profits rose 5.0 percent to 85 million rupees in the March 2013 quarter from a year earlier and written premium also grew helped by fire business. Its conglomerate solvency ratio had declined to 183 percent from 197 due to […]
Micro Expansion
May 20, 2013 (LBO) – Prime Grameen Micro Finance Limited plans to grow its customers from 125,000 members to 200,000 members in 2013, helped by expansions into former war zones in Sri Lanka’s East, officials said.Before borrowing, members of a group will typically start depositing small amounts, helping develop a savings habit. Some micro finance […]
Vehicle Trends
May 20, 2013 (LBO) – Sri Lanka’s motor vehicle registrations have picked up slightly in April 2013 though still remaining far below levels seen after taxes were hiked last year, an analysis by an equities research house shows.There was a slight pick-up in all vehicle registrations in January 2012 and which petered off in the […]
Sri Lanka asked to curb refuse tea exports to Iraq: commerce ministry
May 19, 2013 (LBO) – A delegation of Iraqi officials have called for tighter controls on exports of Sri Lankan tea to stop refuse tea from entering their country and also complained about production processes at factories, the trade ministry said. “We want the bulk tea shipments to Iraq from Sri Lanka well packaged, and […]
Tele Stability
May 16, 2013 (LBO) – Mobitel, a unit of Sri Lanka Telecom has made a profit of 640 million rupees in the March 2013 quarter, turning around from a loss of 950 million rupees, a year earlier, its parent said.Losses last year came from currency depreciation, the firm said. Revenues had grown 10 percent to […]
James Packer targets Asian high-rollers with new Sydney casino
Sydney, May 16, 2013 (AFP) – Tycoon James Packer has picked a British firm to design his proposed billion-dollar casino for Asian high-rollers in Sydney, saying Thursday it will be “instantly recognisable around the world”. The Australian mogul wants his 60-storey building to rival the Sydney Opera House in the iconic structure stakes and to […]
Better Trade
May 16, 2013 (LBO) – Small businesses in Sri Lanka and the Maldives will soon have access sophisticated financial products to engage in international trade, International Finance Corporation (IFC), a member of the World Bank Group said. The organization also provides advisory services to for small and medium enterprises by improving access to finance, and […]
Indian cricketer Sreesanth held for spot-fixing
NEW DELHI, May 16, 2013 (AFP) – Indian cricket authorities on Thursday suspended three players, including Test paceman Shanthakumaran Sreesanth, after they were arrested for alleged spot-fixing during the Indian Premier League.Uncapped bowlers Ankeet Chavan and Ajit Chandila were the other hermes bags two players suspended from the ongoing domestic Twenty20 competition. “The three players… […]
Sri Lanka exports to India surge after free trade agreement
May 16, 2013 (LBO) – Sri Lanka’s exports to India have surged under a free trade deal, growing six fold, with the number of items going up four fold to 2,100 but most of the imports to the island take place outside the agreement, economists said.“On average 70 percent of Sri Lanka’s exports to India […]
‘s Krrish to pay up
May 15, 2013 (LBO) – Sri Lanka has given India’s Krrish group till May 31 to complete their payments charging 12 percent interest for an extension, investment promotion minister Lakshman Abeywardena said.Out of 4,995 million rupees due for land leased for a mixed development project, the company had so far paid 4,049 million rupees or […]