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Sri Lanka aims for 8.5% growth in 2011
Jan 04, 2011 (LBO) – Sri Lanka is aiming for economic growth of 8.5 percent in 2011 after growing eight percent in 2010 and expects growth to accelerate to nine percent in 2012 and 9. 5 percent in 2013, central bank governor Nivard Cabraal said. Government recurrent expenditure is estimated to decrease to 16.1 percent […]
Sri Lanka BOP surplus in 2010 US$900mn
Jan 04, 2011 (LBO) – Sri Lanka expect to have had a balance of payments surplus of 900 million US dollars in 2010, Central Bank governor Nivard Cabraal said. Gross official foreign exchange reserves reached 6.6 billion US dollars by the end of 2010, he said in a speech outlining the central bank’s monetary policy […]
Sri Lanka shares end up 0.33-pct
Jan 03, 2011, (LBO) – Sri Lankan stocks closed higher Monday with activity seen in the index heavy and poultry sector stocks, brokers said. The All Share Price Index closed at 6,657. 91, up 0.33 percent (22.04 points) while the more liquid Milanka index closed flat at 7,061. 36, according to stock exchange provisional figures. […]
Optional Deal
Jan 03, 2011 (LBO) – Sri Lankan shipbuilder Colombo Dockyard has won an optional contract to build a third Multipurpose Platform Supply Vessels (MPSV) for Greatship Global Offshore Services of Singapore, a statement said. The main contract for the construction of two 78-metre MPSVs, signed in October 2010, provided for Greatship Global Offshore Services (GGOSL) […]
Derived Rating
Jan 03, 2011 (LBO) – RAM Ratings Lanka has confirmed State Mortgage and Investment Bank’s (SMIB) long- and short-term financial institutions ratings of A and P1 with a stable outlook for the former, a statement said. “The ratings are based on the bank’s strong capitalisation and the financial flexibility it derives from its sole shareholder, […]
Sri Lanka to test new visa scheme for three months
Jan 03, 2011 (LBO) – A new online visa scheme Sri Lanka plans to introduce, replacing existing on-arrival visas, will be tested for three months before the government decides to implement it, an official said. Sri Lanka received more than 600,000 tourists in 2010 and aims to attract 700,000 this year. Nalaka Godahewa, chairman of […]
Sri Lanka considers banning mini-skirts
January 3, 2011 (AFP) – Sri Lanka said Monday it was considering banning mini-skirts following complaints about women wearing skimpy clothing in the conservative island nation. Last year, US singer Akon was denied a visa to perform in Sri Lanka after Buddhist monks took offence at one of his videos that featured women in bikinis […]
Sri Lanka rupee strength helps rein in inflation: CB
Jan 03, 2011 (LBO) – The strengthening of the Sri Lanka rupee helped rein in inflation which was kept at a mid-single digit level in 2010, the central bank said in a statement. The average domestic prices of wheat flour and milk powder decreased while the price of sugar increased compared to 2009. The Sri […]
Sri Lanka tourist trade raises alarm over new visa rule
Jan 02, 2011 (LBO) – Sri Lanka’s tourist industry wants the government to postpone a new rule to charge for visas, scrapping on-arrival visas, saying it could deter visitors whose numbers boomed after the end of a war, a report said. Approval for a visa would not take more than a single day. ‘New visa […]
Bandwidth Battle
Jan 02, 2011 (LBO) – Sri Lanka Telecom (SLT) has increased bandwidth speeds and data volumes for broadband customers and reduced charges from January 01, 2011, a statement said. “All our volume based broadband packages are free of bandwidth control and contention.” Editor’s note – a spokesman for SLT has clarified that this announcement is […]
Sri Lanka to scrap visa on arrival
December 31, 2010 (AFP) – Sri Lanka has revived plans to scrap the visa on arrival for foreigners, except Maldivians and and Singaporeans, and will launch an on-line visa application system, officials said Friday. The local tourism industry has been buoyed by a near 50 percent increase in foreign visitors since fighting ended in May […]
Sri Lanka government heads for mid-term test
January 1, 2011 (AFP) – Sri Lanka will hold its first nationwide local elections since the crushing of Tamil Tiger rebels, a minister said, with the mid-March vote seen as a key test for the ruling party. Political sources said the local election would be a key test of the government’s popularity as the country […]