Category: Industry
Annual Picture
Apr 03, 2009 (LBO) – Sri Lanka’s People’s Bank group has reported net profits of 3,427 million rupees in 2008, 2.2 percent lower, while interest income grew 23.4 percent to 64.3 billion rupees, according to the annual report. At stand alone bank level net profits were up 13.9 percent to 2,704 million rupees, with group […]
Shrinking Credit
April 02, 2009 (LBO) – Sri Lanka’s private sector credit is shrinking with credit card users also falling for two straight months as an economic slowdown begins to bite, the latest official data show. Credit from central bank to the government rose to 244.5 billion rupees in January 2009, from 217.4 billion rupees a month […]
Oil Hit
April 02, 2009 (LBO) – Non-performing assets at Citibank’s Sri Lanka branch have rocketed after state-run Ceylon Petroleum Corporation (CPC) refused to pay up on controversial oil derivatives which went against the utility.Citi, Standard Chartered, Deutsche Bank and locally incorporated People’s Bank and Commercial Bank sold oil derivatives to CPC. Commercial Bank took a 692 […]
Sri Lanka gets more duty free access to Pakistan
April 02, 2009 (LBO) – Pakistan has increased the number of products that can be imported from Sri Lanka to 4,000 under the final phase of the free trade deal between the two countries.Exporters can obtain concessions under the FTA from the Department of Commerce which is the authority that is monitoring the implementation of […]
Closed Door
WASHINGTON, April 1, 2009 (AFP) – The United States began taking visa applications Wednesday for highly skilled foreigners, with lawmakers pressing to close the door to some of the long-coveted workers amid the recession.Robert Hoffman, a vice president at software giant Oracle and co-chair of Compete America, a coalition of tech companies lobbying to hire […]
Lubricant Trends
April 01, 2009 (LBO) – Sri Lanka’s Chevron unit said net profit for the 2008 financial year fell 12 percent to 948 million rupees from a year ago with high fuel price and economic slowdown reducing sales amid increasing competition.Revenue for the financial year ending December 31, 2008 rose three percent to 8.9 billion rupees, […]
Female Targets
April 01, 2009 (LBO) – Sri Lankan retailer Odel said it has opened a fashion accessories store for women called ‘Backstage’ in Singapore with more overseas outlets planned.Gunewardene said that later this year, Backstage will open its second outlet in Singapore at Orchard Central and also plans to enter the Maldives and India. Janine Magrath, […]
Sri Lanka Aitken Spence opens new Maldivian resort
April 01, 2009 (LBO) – Sri Lanka’s Aitken Spence group said it has opened its latest Maldivian luxury resort called Adaaran ˜Prestige’ Vadoo. The resort, 15 minutes by speed boat from Male’ International Airport, has 50 villas including six Japanese concept rooms on the ocean, a company statement said. The company said each villa comes […]
Fresh Equity
April 01, 2009 (LBO) – A one-third stake in Sri Lanka’s Seylan Bank being offered to new investors by the regulators will be in new shares with the cash going into boost the capital of the bank. Ceylinco group currently owns a 24 percent stake of Seylan bank’s voting stock while its board manages several […]
Top Marks
April 01, 2009 (LBO) – The Commercial Bank of Ceylon has been adjudged Sri Lanka’s ˜Best Bank’ for the 11th successive year by the financial publication Global Finance (USA), a company statement said. The ranking comes in a year when some of the best banks of previous years have lost their places to competitors due […]
Bank Promotions
April 01, 2009 (LBO) – Sri Lanka’s central bank said it has promoted four Assistant Governors, Rose Cooray, K G D D Dheerasinghe, Uthum Herat and D S Wijesinghe to the post of Deputy Governor.Cooray’s promotion was with effect from March 13 while the others will be promoted in May and July 2009. “These promotions […]
Missing Miles
April 01, 2009 (LBO) – Sri Lanka is in talks with the Asian Development Bank on ways to raise funds to build the last stretch of a key highway linking the island’s south with the capital Colombo, a senior ADB official said.The highway, meant to link the capital Colombo with the town of Matara in […]