Fitch affirms Standard Chartered Bank, Sri Lanka at ‘AAA(lka)’; Outlook Stable

Fitch Ratings Lanka has affirmed Standard Chartered Bank, Sri Lanka’s National Long-Term Rating at ‘AAA(lka)’. The Outlook ....

BOC, SLIM Kantar People’s Banking Services Brand of Year

Reinforcing its leadership in the banking sector as ‘Bankers to the Nation’, Bank of Ceylon (BOC) clinched the prestigious SLIM Kantar....

Credit on freight should be reasonable

The business of international trade between parties often takes place with credit periods as a competition tool....

AIA Insurance opens Panadura Regional Development Office

AIA Insurance announced the grand opening of its latest Regional Development Office (RDO) situated in the heart of the Panadura...

NDB conducts FY23 Investor Earnings Call

National Development Bank PLC (NDB) recently conducted its quarterly Investor Earnings Call on March 20, 2024, following the release...

USA’s Commercial Law Development Programme trains SLPA senior staff

The Commercial Law Development Programme (CLDP) of the United States Department of Commerce implemented ....

Vallibel Finance opens new branch in Weligama

Expanding its outreach across Sri Lanka, Financial trailblazer Vallibel Finance opened its latest branch in the Southern province....

ComBank launches biggest seasonal shopping promotion

Commercial Bank of Ceylon is heralding the arrival of the Sinhala and Tamil New Year with the launch of its biggest seasonal....

Unemployment rate declines to 4.3% as economy recovers

Sri Lanka’s official unemployment rate slipped to 4.3 percent in the final quarter of last year from 4.7 percent in the quarter before as the economy expanded in the final three months of the year.

Central Bank to revisit regulatory sandbox framework

The Central Bank (CB) is planning to revisit the framework of its regulatory sandbox, relaxing some of stringent rules, after the initiative failed to gain traction among fintech players over the past four years.

Genelle opens flagship store in Colombo 7

Genelle Handcrafted Shoes opened its newest retail outlet in Horton Place recently. Reflecting on the transformative journey, Co-Founder Sheran Wickremesekere said, “We’ve traversed a remarkable path from being mere shoe manufacturers to creators of a recognized brand over the years. Along the way, we’ve encountered numerous challenges, but we’ve met them head-on, emerging stronger to establish ourselves as a formidable brand committed to offerin

HNB Finance celebrates Int’l Women’s Day

HNB Finance PLC commemorated International Women’s Day 2024 under the theme “Invest in Women. Accelerate Progress” with a special programme aimed at recognising and empowering the female workforce. The celebration, held at the Auditorium at the HNB Finance Head Office premises in Nawala on March 8, featured a range of activities to honour and support women in the workplace, and saw widespread participation from female staff from across the ranks

Samsung Sri Lanka launches ‘Awesome Avurudu’ promotion

Samsung Sri Lanka has introduced the “Samsung Awesome Avurudu” consumer promotion, aimed at bringing joy and rewards to customers celebrating the traditional Sinhala and Tamil New Year, starting from 17th March – 30th April 2024. As part of the festivities, this promotion offers an exciting array of prizes to customers who purchase a new Galaxy Mobile device or Tablet from any authorized Samsung outlet, whether online or offline. Running througho

St. Anthony’s Industries Group unveils new logo

St. Anthony’s Industries Group (Pvt) Ltd., unveiled its new logo recently. This milestone marks a new era for the Group, symbolizing its commitment to excellence, innovation, and industry leadership. Lahiru Jayasinghe, Chief Operating Officer, of St. Anthony’s Industries Group said, “This new logo reflects our commitment to excellence and our continued pursuit of innovation as we embark on a new era of transformation. We are excited to unite o

TVR Trust holds Essay and Video Competition

The award ceremony of the “Heta Dinana Sri Lankawak” (A roadmap for a secure tomorrow) Essay & Video Competition organised by the Tennyson & Vinitha Rodrigo Trust was held at the Lotus Room, BMICH. The entries had been evaluated in two stages by a 20-member panel consisting of senior academics of State universities and eminent professionals of the corporate sector covering the three language categories. Cash prizes and certificates were awarded

ComBank engages countrywide female staff at Women’s Day event

The Commercial Bank of Ceylon’s initiatives to celebrate International Women’s Day 2024, also encompassed the bank’s own female staff across the country with a special knowledge sharing session titled “Counting HER in, and Investing in HER.” Organized by the bank’s Women Banking Unit and the Staff Development Center (SDC) of the bank, the event was intended to promote inclusivity, enhance potential, and foster growth among female staff members, t

B2B Luxury Connect to kickoff in April

Boutiques Sri Lanka, renowned for promoting boutique accommodation experiences across the country, is set to host its annual ‘B2B Luxury Connect’ trade fair on April 30th. This luxury travel fair focuses entirely on the small luxury accommodation sector in Sri Lanka and will take place at Monarch Imperial, Sri Jayewardenepura, Kotte. The event, themed “Sustainability Sri Lanka,” aims to provide a platform for carefully selected small luxury bou

Softlogic Stockbrokers launches SL’s first-ever AI-powered market research platform

The local financial market landscape reached a new milestone with Softlogic Stockbrokers unveiling Sri Lanka’s first-ever artificial intelligence (AI)-powered market research platform StockGPT. Developed by the in-house tech team of the group, StockGPT utilises cutting-edge AI technologies, including Microsoft Azure OpenAI Service. The platform offers investors, financial analysts and fund managers unprecedented and instant access to real-time, c

Tea auction sees good demand amidst currency volatility

This week’s Colombo Tea Auction saw 5.14 million kilogrammes come under the hammer, which was met with fair demand, amidst the instability and volatility in the currency, Forbes and Walker Tea Brokers said. The Ex-Estate offerings comprised of 0.85 million kilogrammes. The overall quality of teas from the Western slopes together with the Nuwara Eliyas were reasonably maintained though irregular, whilst the Uva/Uda Pussellawas were fairly similar

Dialog can maintain ‘AAA(lka)’ rating despite slower revenue growth: Fitch

Dialog Axiata PLC can maintain a credit profile commensurate with a ‘AAA(lka)’ rating in the next 12-18 months, despite the slower revenue growth, escalated costs and likely slight higher leverage, Fitch Ratings said. The rating agency affirmed the Sri Lanka-based telecom company’s National Long-Term Rating at ‘AAA(lka)’, with a Stable Outlook. Dialog’s rating is based on its Standalone Credit Profile (SCP) of ‘aaa(lka)’. According to Fitch, thi

Fitch assigns Abans’ proposed debentures AA-(lka)’ National Long-Term Rating

Fitch Ratings has assigned a ‘AA-(lka)’ National Long-Term Rating to Sri Lanka-based consumer electronics retailer Abans PLC’s (AA-(lka)/Stable) proposed senior unsecured redeemable debentures of Rs.1.0 billion, with the option to increase up to Rs.2.0 billion. The proposed debentures are rated in line with Abans’ existing unsecured notes, as they rank equally. The proceeds from the debentures will be used to refinance the company’s existing debt

Inflation cools in February signalling easing price pressures

The consumer prices, measured based on the broader inflation index, pointed to softening prices from the recent highs reached in January, while the prices measured on a monthly basis, in fact, fell into deflationary territory, largely due to the ameliorated food prices in February from a month ago. The consumer prices measured based on the National Consumer Price Index decelerated quite notably to 5.1 percent in the 12 months to February 2024, fr

SL currently on a knife- edge path, cautions IMF

While Sri Lanka is gearing up for elections this year, which could result in uncertainties, the International Monetary Fund (IMF) cautioned that it is absolutely key that the programme objectives are achieved, because with those, Sri Lanka has a chance of emerging from the crisis. “The path is a knife-edge path. We have to remember that. So, yes, we acknowledge in our press report the green shoots that we see for the economy and that’s the beginn

Secondary market stalls, awaiting monetary policy’s verdict

The secondary market exhibited a subdued tone during the day, characterised by ultra-thin trading volumes, as the investors opted to remain on the sidelines in anticipation of the forthcoming monetary policy review scheduled for next week. However, amidst this stillness, a gleam of buying interest emerged on the two-year and four-year bonds, with 15.12.26 maturity trading between 11.35 percent and 11.32 percent and the 15.03.28 and 01.07.28 matu

Mid 2024 will be a turning point for Sri Lanka’s economy, says Ranil

Mid this year will be the turning point for Sri Lanka’s economy, according to President Ranil Wickremesinghe, as from then on the island nation will have opportunities for further progress.

Sino Lanka Power Gen and Softlogic Glomark take the Next Big Step in Sri Lanka’s Future with Solar Power

SLPG, a prominent facilitator of solar power systems, is excited to announce its new partnership with Softlogic Glomark, launching solar systems in six different locations across Sri Lanka. With a combined capacity of 982.43 kWp, this endeavor signifies a significant step towards renewable energy adoption. Notably, Softlogic Glomark – Negombo leads

Integrated water resources management: Creating a positive ripple effect Commemorating World Water Day 2024

American Premium commemorates World Water Day with OrphanCare

As the world commemorates the World Water Day, American Water’s commitment to corporate social responsibility shines through as it joins hands with OrphanCare, an independent trust dedicated towards making a positive impact on the live

Top German tech investor reaffirms future investments in Sri Lanka

Dr. Cornelius Boersch, a top German tech investor, has reaffirmed commitment and future investments in Sri Lanka. Having invested in the tech sector for 30 years across frontier markets spanning South America to Asia, Dr. Boersch maintai

Top trade delegation from China visits BOI

A delegation, led by Zhang Xiaodong, Secretary General, Chief Representative of China for Sri Lanka-China Association f