Category:
Reducing roaming rates; making South Asian regional integration real
Apr 07, 2009 (LBO) – In 2006, Zain Africa took a step that led to the abolition of roaming charges and made a significant contribution to economic integration of the East African region.They did more for making the East African Community real than several meetings of government leaders and officials combined. Integration in practice Economic […]
Scuffles as British police end all-night Tamil demo
LONDON, April 7, 2009 (AFP) – British police moved in Tuesday to end an overnight protest by Tamils over alleged rights abuses in Sri Lanka, triggering brief scuffles, an AFP reporter said. Four lifeboats were scrambled after some of the protestors reportedly threatened to throw themselves into the nearby River Thames. One person did enter […]
Sri Lanka to lose aid from Netherlands: report
April 07, 2009 (LBO) – The Netherlands will stop giving aid to Sri Lanka due to an internal conflict, ending a longstanding partnership which had given 30 to 40 million Euros each year to the island, a media report said. A web report of the British Broadcasting Corporation’s Sinhala Service said the Netherlands government had […]
Sri Lanka has space for monetary easing: Central Bank
April 07, (LBO) – Sri Lanka has space for easing policy with inflation coming down, Central Bank governor Nivard Cabraal said, as the monetary authority sounded strong warnings against runaway government spending.“What we like to say is when inflation comes down there is more space to relax monetary,” Cabraal told reporters Monday.“We cannot give amounts […]
Sri Lanka urged to go slow on big projects
April 06, 2009 (LBO) – Sri Lanka should go slow on big projects because of funds shortages in order to be able to better cope with the economic slowdown this year, the central bank said. “Financial flows to the government and the private sectors are likely to decline in 2009 and recover gradually thereafter,” the […]
Sri Lanka rupee has greater space for market determination: CB Governor
April 06, 2009 (LBO) – Sri Lankan Central Bank governor Nivard Cabraal said there was greater space for markets to determine the exchange rate, as the country heads for an International Monetary Fund bailout. The Central Bank lost more than two thirds of its reserve trying to defend a peg with the US dollar from […]
Sri Lanka small investors nibble at strong stocks
Apr 06, 2009 (LBO) – Sri Lankan shares edged up Monday supported by blue chip price increases in low volume trade, as small investors took tentative steps to invest in fundamentally strong stocks, brokers said.Mobile giant Dialog Telekom gained 10 cents to close at 4.90, while fixed line operator Sri Lankan Telecom gained 75 cents […]
Merchant Rating
April 06, 2009 (LBO) – Fitch Ratings Lanka said it has confirmed the ‘BBB’ rating of Merchant Credit of Sri Lanka Ltd.(MCSL) with a stable outlook. The rating reflects the implied support assumed to be available from its ultimate parent, state-owned Bank of Ceylon (BOC, ‘AA(lka)’), Sri Lanka’s largest bank, the rating agency said in […]
Regulatory Forbearance
April 06, 2009 (LBO) – The Sri Lankan government is considering relaxing criteria for bad loan provisioning to help the corporate sector cope with the effects an economic downturn, a senior finance ministry official said. Some private sector representatives from the construction sector, which has been badly affected by the slowdown, also asked at the […]
Over tea, US admiral cultivates Pakistani army chief
WASHINGTON, April 6, 2009 (AFP) – For the United States, much may be riding on an unlikely relationship between America’s highest ranking military officer and Pakistan’s powerful army chief.Over cups of tea and the occasional cigar, the avuncular American admiral and the reserved general talk about terrorist threats and sensitive military operations in a region […]
Brain drain or brain gain?
Apr 06, 2009 (LBO) – Many have expressed their concern about the rising incidence of educated youth leaving the country for employment in developed countries. The protest against the practice, commonly known as ‘brain drain’, is based on both economic and non-economic reasons. Economic Reasons The economic reasons adduced against the brain drain take the […]
Sri Lanka economic growth to slow to 2.5% in 2009
April 06, 2009 (LBO) – Sri Lanka’s economic growth is forecast to slow sharply to 2.5 percent this year, from six percent last year and then recover to five percent in 2010, the central bank said.“Hence, in order to maintain inflation at a single digit level in the medium-term, it is imperative to continue with […]