Tag: Finance

December 29, 2006 (LBO) – Consumer prices in Sri Lanka rose by 2.3 percent in December, keeping 12-month inflation at 19.3 percent, the Census & Statistics Department said Friday. In the 12-months to November, inflation hit a ten year high of 19.8 percent, when the index rose by 4.4 percent in the preceding 30 days. […]

Dec 26, 2006 (AFP) – The United Nations slammed Sri Lanka’s warring parties for stalling tsunami reconstruction efforts Tuesday as the island marked the second anniversary of the disaster by unveiling a Buddha statue. The outgoing UN Secretary General Kofi Annan blamed both Colombo and the Tamil Tiger rebels for the violence that has slowed […]

Dec 26, 2006 (AFP) – Japan Tuesday gifted loudhailers and life jackets to Sri Lanka’s police to mark the second anniversary of the tsunami which killed 31,000 people in the island.Japan’s ambassador here, Kiyoshi Araki, gifted the equipment to police chief Victor Perera in Colombo, the Japanese embassy said. It said Japan was also helping […]

December 23, 2006 (LBO) – The International Monetary Fund will close its office in Sri Lanka from mid next month, the global financial watchdog said Saturday. The office in Colombo is being wound up late January, when the term of its current resident representative, Luis Valdivieso ends. “The decision reflects the evolving nature of the […]

December 22, 2006 (LBO) – The International Monetary Fund Friday asked Sri Lanka to go slow on hiring public servants and pay more attention to reduce inflation, implement public sector reforms and ensure subsidies are targeted better. In its annual country report, the IMF said Sri Lanka’s quest for 7-8 percent growth hinges on improved […]

December 22 (LBO) – Sri Lanka’s exchange rate regime has been re-classified to a managed float from free float after violating International Monetary Fund articles and heavy official intervention, the IMF has said. Though fiscal prudence still seems to be out of reach, analysts say Sri Lanka’s central bank has started to tighten monetary policy […]

December 21 (LBO) – Sri Lanka’s rich western province has led the list again of top contributors to the island’s economic growth last year, the Central Bank said, though service sector expansion boosted fortunes of poorer areas. “Product diversification could reduce concentration in a few crops that dampen the marketability of such produce profitably due […]

December 20, 2006 (LBO) – Sri Lanka’s president Mahinda Rajapakse has given notice to owners of prime property around his official residence, that their land would be acquired urgently to develop a Presidential Square. Rajapakse has issued the order, on the recommendations of the minister in charge of Urban Development. More than 4 acres of […]

Dec 18, 2006 (AFP) – Corruption and ethnic violence is blocking a flood of foreign aid for Sri Lanka’s tsunami survivors two years after the massive disaster, according to official records and whistle-blowers. This year, there are no ceremonies to remember the tsunami dead and the destitute, but instead the government has named December 26 […]

November 16 (LBO) – Sri Lanka should grasp the opportunities to grow its services sector using historical advantages, as India has already started to do, before that opportunity is also missed, a senior economist and central banker said.“If a country stubbornly and arrogantly refuses to accept this fact, it stands to lose, while others continue […]

December 15, 2006 (LBO) – Sri Lanka’s main international lenders are due to meet late next month to asses their ongoing projects and discuss future funding programmes, a top official said. “This will not be a pledging conference for money,” explains Central Bank governor, Nivard Cabraal. “We will discuss our ten-year development plan with donors, […]

December 15 (LBO) – Corruption watchdog Transparency International slammed tsunami relief agencies in Sri Lanka on Friday for sloppy work and scant regard for an independent financial audit. The agency audited six tsunami projects in Sri Lanka – the only six of 70 agencies approached, who agreed to a Value for Money audit by Transparency […]