Industry – Page 595 – Lanka Business Online

Price Signals

Mar 05, 2012 (LBO) – Sri Lanka’s Gampaha district in the Western province bordering the capital Colombo was the area with the highest kerosene consumption with most of it going to factories, the finance ministry said. Though there was a widespread belief that kerosene is consumed by poor households with no electricity including houses of […]

Southern Tech

Mar 05, 2012 (LBO) – Sri Lanka is building an information technology park in Suriyawewa in Hambantota in the island’s south, which is expected to be fully operational by 2016-2017, an official said. Reshan Devapura, head of Sri Lanka’s state ICT Agency said the IT park is being built on a 200 acre site. The […]

Burning Loss

Mar 03, 2012 (LBO) – Giving subsidized furnace oil to a state-run power utility was the main main source of losses at a petroleum utility, while the private firms also made higher profits due to cheap power, the finance ministry said. The finance ministry said state-run Ceylon Petroleum Corporation lost 90 billion rupees in 2011 […]

Sri Lanka airport expansion financed by Japan

Mar 03, 2012 (LBO) – Sri Lanka’s main international airport has secured financing of 28.9 billion yen financing (330 million US dollars) to expand and modernize facilities as tourist arrivals continue to expand. In 2011 tourist arrivals rose 30 percent. The state information office said the cabinet of ministers had given the nod to get […]

Sri Lanka interest rate increases seen hitting insurance growth

Mar 02, 2012 (LBO) – The rise in interest rates in Sri Lanka, which began recently, could reduce the growth of the insurance market as it reduces the affordability of insurance products, RAM Ratings Lanka said. However, the rating agency said that despite the premium growth, most general insurers’ underwriting performance continued to be weak, […]

Sri Lanka gets AirAsia flight to Bangkok

Mar 02, 2012 (LBO) – Low-cost carrier AirAsia’s Thai unit has begun direct flights connecting Bangkok with the Sri Lankan capital Colombo aiming to attract tourists and pilgrims in both countries whose main religion is Buddhism. Tassapon Bijleveld, chief executive of Thai AirAsia, said they expect a load factor of around 75-80 percent in the […]

Higher Rates

Mar 02, 2012 (LBO) – Capital Alliance Finance Plc, a registered finance company in Sri Lanka said it is offering 14.5 percent for six month fixed deposits targeting short term investors amid a general rise in interest rates. “Many of the fixed deposit schemes available today are medium to long term investor friendly whilst short […]

‘s central bank says S&P downgrade unwarranted

Feb 29, 2012 (LBO) – Sri Lanka’s Central Bank says an outlook and rating by Standard & Poor’s in the wake of balance of payments pressure is unwarranted because corrective steps have been taken by the government. S&P on Wednesday cut the outlook on Sri Lanka’s ‘B+’ foreign currency rating to ‘stable’ from ‘positive’ and […]

Japan gains Sri Lanka auto market share with hybrids

Mar 01, 2012 (LBO) – Japan has increased its share in Sri Lanka’s auto market to 36 percent from 33 percent in value with a surge in hybrid vehicles, amid a boom coming after a cut in taxes, Sri Lanka’s main business chamber said. More than 100,000 petrol driven three wheelers have been imported in […]

‘s AirAsia cuts pre-booked meal prices

Mar 01, 2012 (LBO) – AirAisa, a Malaysia based budget carrries said it had cut in-flight meals as much as 30 percent in the wake of a cut in check-in baggage fees two weeks earlier. “AirAsia always strives to listen to our guests, and take into account their feedback on how we can make their […]

Asset Quality

Mar 01, 2012 (LBO) – Sri Lanka’s Sampath Bank said December 2011 quarter net profit fell 34 percent from a year ago but a rapid growth in staff and branches should help boost profits in future despite falling interest margins. He said 78 percent of the bank’s funding was generated from deposits compared with an […]

Margin Squeeze

Feb 29, 2012 (LBO) – Sri Lanka’ Hatton National Bank group December 2011 profits rose 21 percent from a year earlier to 2. 254 rupees helped by lower tax charges though core banking margins tightened, accounts showed. The bank reported earnings of 5.80 rupees for the quarter. For the year ending December it reported earnings […]