Category: Trade

Jan 07, 2011 (LBO) – A United States trade facility allowing duty free Sri Lankan exports that lapsed is likely to be renewed with retroactive effect as has happened in the past, officials said. The US Congress has not renewed the Generalized System of Preferences (GSP) program before its conclusion of business and therefore GSP […]

Dec 23, 2010 (LBO) – Sri Lanka is to get its first ship load of imported ‘big’ onions next week as traders claimed they had run out of stocks Thursday after an export ban imposed by India, the main supplier. Sri Lanka usually imports 4,000-5,000 tonnes of big onions a week from India. The Pettah […]

Dec 22, 2010 (LBO) – Sri Lanka’s export earnings in October 2010 shot up 27. 6 percent to 802 million US dollars from a year ago, the third highest monthly value, spurred by higher apparel and commodity exports, the central bank said. Imports grew at a slower 8.4 percent to 1,131 million dollars during the […]

Dec 21, 2010 (LBO) – Prices of onions and leeks in Sri Lanka could rise after India’s decision to suspend exports of onions, a trade official said. Sri Lanka imports 4,000-5,000 tonnes of onions a week from India which supplies about 60 percent of the world requirements of onions. Pettah Wholesale Traders’ Association vice chairman […]

Dec 02, 2020 (LBO) – Sri Lanka has had 13 rounds of negotiations on a new trade deal with India and “certain sections” of the proposed Comprehensive Economic Partnership Agreement (CEPA) had not yet been concluded, a government minister has said. Sri Lanka started liberalizing trade in 1977. India had been Sri Lanka’s biggest trade […]

Nov 30, 2010 (LBO) – Sri Lanka’s government agencies involved in exports and imports need to co-ordinate better to minimise delays and smoothen trade, said Sarath Jayatilake, former Director General of Sri Lanka Customs. Export consignments already checked by one agency are sometimes inspected again by a different agency, he told a stakeholders meeting on […]

November 29, 2010 (AFP) – Pakistani President Asif Ali Zardari called for a barter agreement with Sri Lanka on Monday to boost trade between the two countries. Zardari, on a visit to the island, told legislators that they should switch to exchanging their goods and services rather than depend on dollar-denominated import-export trade that drew […]

Nov 23, 2010 (LBO) – Sri Lanka has made electric and hybrid cars duty free, while value added tax and rates of depreciation allowed for used cars has also been increased, a budget for 2011 said. The government will also allow state workers and state corporation employees to import cars at a lower duty. A […]

Oct 23, 2010 (LBO) – Sri Lanka’s fresh coconut prices hit a new high at this week’s auction in Colombo, compounded by state interventions that restrict trade and keep prices of substitutes at higher than global levels. At Thursday’s auction of fresh coconuts in Colombo – which is a proxy for farm gate prices – […]

Oct 20, 2010 (LBO) – Sri Lankan exporters are still not making enough use of free trade deals giving duty free or preferential access to big markets, a senior trade official said. “It appears some exporters and importers are paying a few million dollars in duty for which they are entitled to duty free access. […]

Oct 13, 2010 (LBO) – The United States is organizing a series of forums Sri Lanka country giving an opportunity especially to smaller businesses outside the capital to find out how to increase trade with the US. The ‘Doing Business’ seminar with assistant trade representative Micheal Delaney will off in Colombo on October 15. Similar […]

Oct 07, 2010 (LBO) – Trade between India and Sri Lankan could be speeded up and costs reduced by the use of pre-shipment data exchanges driven by security concerns being tested in Western economies, an expert said. The pre-shipment information exchanges are being tried in the West in response to concerns about terrorist infiltration of […]