Category: Trade

GENEVA, December 2, 2009 (AFP) – Twenty-two developing and poor countries including emerging giants India and Brazil, on Wednesday agreed on a deal on cutting tariffs on the sidelines of a World Trade Organization meeting. “This is a very important step in south-south cooperation,” said Jorge Taiana, Argentinian Foreign Minister, who chaired the group. Under […]

Nov 30, 2009 (LBO) – High import tariffs maintained by Sri Lanka not only deter investors but also hurt the poor, the American envoy to the island has said.High import tariffs and an economically-damaging tax system hurt not only individual companies, but economic growth in general, said US ambassador Patricia Butenis. “If a company here […]

GENEVA, November 29, 2009 (AFP) – Over 100 developing countries called Sunday for an “urgent” conclusion of negotiations for a world trade liberalisation pact, a day before a key World Trade Organisation ministerial conference.“The ministers of the G20 called for urgent action on the Doha Round,” according to a statement issued by G20 major developing […]

Nov 25, 2009 (LBO) – Sri Lanka’s exports fell 12.8 percent in September 2009 but imports fell at a steeper 36.1 percent shrinking the trade deficit 62.2 percent to 220.4 million US dollars, the Central Bank said. Remittances and net inflows of capital help expand the trade deficit while central bank’s contractionary sterilization activities which […]

November 7, 2009 (AFP) – A top French envoy Saturday asked Sri Lanka to end its state of emergency and probe war crimes ahead of a key European Union ruling on trade concessions to the troubled island. Ambassador for Human Rights, Francois Zimeray, said he hoped Colombo will signal the ending of its war with […]

Nov 07, 2009 (LBO) – A trade portal launched for the south Asian region should improve trade within the region and especially help small businesses, the Ceylon Chamber of Commerce said in a statement. The portal www.saarctrade.info – gives importers, exporters and small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) of the South Asian region access to important […]

Oct 23, 2009 (LBO) – A European Parliament resolution that was critical of Sri Lanka’s human rights record dropped a reference to the GSP Plus trade deal giving duty free access to the island’s exports to European Union markets.The future of the GSP deal is in doubt after a European Commission report earlier in the […]

Oct 23, 2009 (LBO) – Iraq has issued a tender for 15 million kilos of packed black tea but Sri Lankan exporters are disadvantaged by high prices of Ceylon teas and payment problems, a broker said. But the deficit is still 42 million kilos compared with the output in 2008. The global tea tea production […]

Oct 23, 2009 (LBO) – Sri Lankan exporters are not making enough use of duty free access to the United States under its Generalized System of Preferences (GSP) programme, officials said. “It is necessary to educate our exporters about the duty free access to the US,” said Gomi Senadheera, Sri Lanka’s Director-General of Commerce. “There […]

BRUSSELS, October 19, 2009 (AFP) – Sri Lanka was threatened on Monday with losing preferential trading status with the European Union over human rights violations, the EU commission said Monday. A Sri Lankan foreign ministry statement said Colombo had blocked a team of experts from visiting “as a matter of principle”. The country’s textile industry […]

Oct 20, 2009 (LBO) – The Sri Lankan government said it will study a report by the European Union that said it was in breach of commitments on human rights that might cause it to lose a trade deal. The EC report said the Commission will now decide whether to propose a temporary withdrawal of […]

Oct 19, 2009 (LBO) – The European Union will decide whether or not to renew the GSP Plus trade deal with Sri Lanka giving duty free access to EU markets by early January 2010, a senior official said. Bernard Savage, EU head of delegation to Sri Lanka, said the EU investigation report was submitted to […]