Category:
Upgraded
Feb 12, 2014 (LBO) – RAM Ratings Lanka said it had upgraded a ‘BB-‘ rating of BRAC Lanka Finance Plc (formerly Nanda Investments, by two levels to ‘BB+’ following an ownership change. l The rating has a stable outlook. Bangladesh-based BRAC bought into the firm and RAM said support was expected from the parent. The […]
Boat People
COLOMBO, February 12, 2014 (AFP) – Sri Lanka’s police arrested 75 would-be asylum seekers on Wednesday, including nine women and six children, who were trying to leave for New Zealand illegally by boat, police said.The group was arrested in the southern coastal town of Moragolla, the first large-scale arrest of nationals in months after Australia, […]
Sri Lanka ends 2013 with US$7.2bn in foreign reserves
Feb 12, 2014 (LBO) – Sri Lanka’s foreign reserves rose 4.6 percent to 7,200 million in December 2013 from a year earlier, despite payments to the International Monetary Fund and losses on gold holdings, official data showed. But in pegged exchange rate monetary systems ‘reserves’ are invested abroad such as in liquid US Treasuries and […]
Sri Lanka Treasuries yields mixed
Jan 11, 2014 (LBO) – Sri Lanka’s short term Treasuries yields fell at Tuesday’s auction from two weeks ago, but the 12-month yield was steady from a week earlier, data from the state debt office showed.The debt office offered 12.0 billion rupees of bills for auction and accepted 20.8 billion in bids. Last week bids […]
Sri Lanka gilt dealer begins trading listed debt
Feb 11, 2014 (LBO) – Sri Lanka’s first gilt dealer has begun trading listed corporate debt in the Colombo Stock Exchange kicking off a process that could improve liquidity and secondary trading, officials said.Capital Alliance Ltd (CAL), a primary dealer in government securities became the first firm to trade as a dealer-broker Tuesday, under new […]
Sri Lanka stocks close higher
Feb 11, 2014 (LBO) – Sri Lanka stocks end slightly higher Tuesday with tobacco stocks gaining amid strong foreign selling, brokers said. The Colombo benchmark All Share Price Index closed 2.88 points higher at 6,113.15, up 0.05 percent. The S&P SL20 closed 5.08 points lower at 3,349.35, down 0.15 percent. Turnover was 1.98 billion rupees, […]
Consolidation View
Feb 11, 2014 (LBO) – Sri Lanka’s plan to consolidate banks, could bring long term benefits and greater system stability, Fitch Ratings said.The consolidation master plan envisaged the creation of bigger banks, with an asset base of over 1,000 million rupees. “Only one bank met this threshold at end-September 2013,” Fitch Ratings said. “The government […]
Tribute
AFP.com/Correspondent) Mel Gunasekera became AFP’s first full-time woman correspondent in Colombo when she joined in January 2007. She had covered Sri Lanka’s Tamil separatist war and its bloody finale in 2009 and was widely respected across the country.On February 2, she was murdered at her Colombo home after confronting a burglar.By Amal Jayasinghe When a […]
AirAsia X drops Maldives, continues Sri Lanka flights
Jan 11, 2014 (LBO) – Malaysia-based AirAsia X, a long haul budget carrier said it will stop flying to Maldives from next month, but will continue flights to Sri Lanka four times a week.AirAsia X said it was halting Male flights due to “challenging business conditions”. “The decision to withdraw from Male was a difficult […]
‘s Altair residential tower to be built by Shapoorji Pallonji
Feb 11, 2014 (LBO) – A 68-storey lakefront apartment tower tipped to be tallest residential tower in South Asia when completed in 2017 will be built by Shapoorji Pollonji International, a Dubai based construction firm, its promoters said. The ‘Altair’ luxury condominium project by the Beira lake in Sri Lanka’s capital Colombo will be 240 […]
Cricket: Sri Lanka says it had to abstain from ICC vote
COLOMBO, February 11, 2014 (AFP) – Sri Lanka has defended its decision to tacitly support a controversial shakeup of cricket’s world body, saying it was left with no choice after South Africa broke ranks over the move.Sri Lanka, Pakistan and South Africa all opposed the revamp of the International Cricket Council’s (ICC) governance and structure […]
‘s Srinivasan
NEW DELHI, February 10, 2014 (AFP) – A controversial shake-up of the governance and structure of cricket’s world body will benefit the game and ensure its financial health, India’s powerful boss N. Srinivasan said on Monday. “I think it’s good for cricket overall, good for the financial health of all full, associate and affiliate members. […]