Category: Industry
Sri Lankan in code share deal with British carrier after war ends
July 30, 2009 (LBO) – State-run national carrier SriLankan Airlines, said it had broadened a code share deal with UK’s bmi following the relaxation of British travel advice following the end of a war. SriLankan Airlines says there are no European airlines flying in to Colombo, apart from ad hoc charter operations. Bmi will shortly […]
Telco Scout
July 30, 2009 (LBO) – Emirates Telecommunications Corporation or Etisalat is scouting for investment opportunities in Sri Lanka’s fast growing telecom sector after the end of its decades long ethnic war, a top official said. Millicom officials have not commented on individual firms that are in the bidding process except to say that several firms […]
Recovery Path
July 30, 2009 (LBO) – Sri Lanka’s Seylan Bank said it had stepped up efforts to recover loans and improved credit evaluation and corporate governance under new management which was appointed by the banking regulator. It said in a statement the bank, which faced a run after the collapse of an unlisted subsidiary of its […]
Financial Scrutiny
July 30, 2009 (LBO) – Sri Lankan authorities have begun evaluating the financial proposal of the sole bid by China Merchant Holdings and Aitken Spence for a new container terminal in Colombo port, officials involved with the project said.The new port, which has been delayed for years, is needed urgently to cater to the bigger […]
Cost Model
July 29, 2009 (LBO) – The Sri Lankan unit of Bharti Airtel, which entered the island in January triggering a price war, says it is confident of making money with its low cost business model. “When we look at countries like Sri Lanka, we feel that the model we used in India can be replicated […]
Bank Score
July 29, 2009 (LBO) – Fitch Ratings Lanka said it has confirmed Hatton National Bank’s (HNB) National Long-term rating at ‘AA-(lka)’ with a stable outlook. The rating reflects the bank’s good profitability, asset quality and capitalisation among local commercial banks, Fitch said in a statement. Fitch also confirmed the bank’s subordinated debentures at ‘A+(lka)’. HNB’s […]
Sri Lanka private flying revival in the offing
July 29, 2009 (LBO) – Sri Lanka’s civil aviation authority is considering giving approval for the operation of more private aircraft, the use of which was severely restricted and sometimes banned during the ethnic war.But the Tigers were defeated by government forces in May and flying restrictions are being eased with the end of the […]
Wire Drop
July 29, 2009 (LBO) – Sri Lanka’s wireline telephone connections dropped by 60,000 to 876,064 in the first quarter of 2009, the latest official data showed, though fixed wireless phone use continued to grow. “The decline of fixed connections started around 2000 in Finland, where now over 40 percent of homes are mobile-only,” says Rohan […]
Sri Lanka insurance sector grows in tight conditions
July 28, 2009 (LBO) – Sri Lanka’s life insurance sector grew 13.9 percent taking in gross written premiums of 23.6 billion rupees in 2008, a year that saw high inflation, a report by the industry regulator, Insurance Board of Sri Lanka (IBSL) said. The life insurance sector grew 21.2 percent in 2007, the annual report […]
Million Mark
July 28, 2009 (LBO) – Sri Lanka’s Bharti Airtel has exceeded one million customers and the firm is rolling out its network in the east of the island, following the end of a 30-year war in the island, a top official said.“We have exceeded one million customers in Sri Lanka in 171 days of operations,” […]
Sri Lanka in ADB south Asia tourism project
July 28, 2009 (LBO) – Sri Lanka has been included in an Asian Development Bank funded project to link and promote tourist sites in south Asian countries, especially for eco-tourism and pilgrimage tourism. A report by the ADB said the project was conceived as a linked series of sub-regional tourism investments in the five countries […]
Bank Numbers
July 28, 2009 (LBO) – Sri Lanka’s Seylan Bank said net profit for the June 2009 quarter fell 39 percent to 188 million rupees from a year ago with both interest income and fee income falling and bad loans rising.The bank, part of the Ceylinco group, said in a stock exchange filing that interest income […]