Category:
Private port
Colombo South Harbor, which will be more than double the ports capacity to handle containers, is likely to be built with private sector help.Colombo Port will run out of space in 2012 after the Jaya Container Terminals (JCT) is expanded to its full potential of 5.5 million containers a year in the medium term.rn rnThis […]
DFCC gets Merc Bank
DFCC bank plans to offer more commercial banking products to its customers once it acquires a small commercial bank.DFCC says they will not merge operations with troubled Merc Bank when they take up a significant controlling stake in it within days. rn rnAlthough DFCC does not plan to merge the Merc Bank business with its […]
Tourism bull
The tourism market is expected to grow at 20% a year over the next five years according to stockbroker estimates. They also say that high spending tourists and business travel traffic is improving with positive effects on the industry.Analysts say the sector could expand if the current trends in politics and global tourism continue.rn rnDFCC […]
Hambantota Woes
The Hambantota Port project may not get off ground as soon as expected, Ports Minister Rauf Hakeem warned today. The Canadian firm SNC Lavelin offered to conduct the feasibility last year, and is due to submit the final report by September.rn rnBut their pre-feasibility work has so far failed to impress the authorities.rn rnldblquote I […]
Floodgates
The market raced past the 1000 point mark on Friday in a frenzy of largely local interest, in levels last seen eight years ago.rnrn The All Share Index climbed to 1001.61 towards the end of trade today, closing at 995, while the blue chip Milanka index rose 23 points to end the day at 1913.1.rn […]
Beyond Beaches
Surviving through two decades of fluctuating fortunes, tourism is now moving to giddier heights of the big spenders and a niche of expensive boutique hotels. With war fears somewhat allayed, analysts expect an annual 20 percent growth rate for tourism over the next five years if the ceasefire holds.rn rnIn the first year of the […]
Earth Slip
The Government has approached the United Nations in Geneva for US$ 27.5 mn rnin short term relief to rebuild houses and infrastructure damaged in recent floods.rn rnA full scale flood damage assessment is currently underway by the Asian Development Bank (ADB), Minister Karu Jayasuriya said Thursday. rn rnldblquote We have already Rs. 100 mn in […]
Quick Time
Sri Lanka Telecom has started rolling out the first phase of its plan to innovative broadband access technologies for residential and business customers. ADSL or Asymmetric Digital Subscriber Line is essentially a continuously open data line to an Internet Service Provider that works over conventional telephone lines.rn rnADSL in addition allows the ability to transfer […]
Peace Rally
Banking stocks stole the market Thursday, with National Development Bank and NDB Bank (NBL) netting 50 percent of the Rs. 457.21 mn in total turnover. Brokers say NBL accounted for 28 percent or 127 mn and NDB 22 percent of total volumes traded.rn rnldblquote Investors are seeing value in NDB stocks even at current levels […]
Building Blocks
Standard concession agreements are being drawn up for the road sector, spelling out the financial, technical and legal A to Zs for potential private developers.rnrn Concession agreements spell out government policy in areas such as how many years a developer operates a project, to government concessions and guidelines on tolling.rn rnldblquote Concession agreements will form […]
Fail Safe
A blueprint for a proposed social security net for retrenched workers has got the Treasury go-ahead, with the changes to be gazetted in two weeks.rn ldblquote The treasury has approved the proposal we put forward and we hope to reach a final decision in two weeks, before we can officially announce it dblquote , Labour […]
Short Circuit
rnRegulators are holding back on a date to auction overseas call access codes due to a lack of interconnection between operators.rnrnPreviously, the auction set for mid May was put off for a June date, again due to interconnection issues and a lack of rules governing the sale. rn rnNow, a draft set of rules are […]