Agriculture processing mega zone in Uhana

Prime Minister Ranil Wickremesinghe laid the foundation for an agriculture processing mega zone in Uhana, Ampara yesterday. Primary Industries and Social Empowerment Minister Daya Gamag

Singaporeans charged over illegal drone flying

SINGAPORE (AFP) - Two Singaporean men were charged yesterday with flying drones near a military airbase without permission, the city-state’s first such prosecutions as it cracks down on illegal use of the devices.

Jaguar Land Rover decides to build electric cars in UK

LONDON (AFP) - Car manufacturer Jaguar Land Rover will make electric cars at its central England factory, it announced yesterday, securing thousands of jobs in a major boost to post-Brexit Britain.

Ex-British finance chief Osborne eyes IMF role: media

LONDON (AFP) - Former British finance minister George Osborne is lining up a bid to replace Christine Lagarde as head of the International Monetary Fund, UK newspapers reported this week.

UK competition regulator puts brake on Amazon’s Deliveroo investment

REUTERS - Britain’s competition regulator has stepped in to pause Amazon’s investment in online food delivery group Deliveroo while it considers launching a full investigation.

CB extends suspension on Perpetual Treasuries by six months

The Monetary Board of the Central Bank of Sri Lanka, acting in terms of the regulations made under the Registered Stock and Securities Ordinance and the Local Treasury Bills Ordinance, has decided to extend the suspension of Perpetual Treasuries Limited (PTL) from carrying on the business and activities of a primary dealer for a period of six months with effect from 4.30 p.m. yesterday (July 5th), in order to continue the investigations being con

India to ease investment rules to catch up with China

NEW DELHI (AFP) - India’s newly re-elected government promised yesterday an easing of foreign investment rules and more infrastructure spending in an effort to boost flagging growth rates and create jobs.

Asian markets fluctuate in cautious trade ahead of US jobs data

HONG KONG (AFP) - Asian markets fluctuated yesterday as investors steeled themselves for the release of a crucial US jobs report that could have a major bearing on the size of an expected Federal Reserve interest rate cut.

Shares end at 11-week high; foreign buying boosts turnover

REUTERS - Sri Lankan shares extended gains yesterday to hit their highest close in 11 weeks, boosted by foreign inflows into equities, while the rupee ended weaker.

Tel Aviv takes ride to scooter ‘paradise’

Men use their phones to connect to the electric scooter mobile app while standing on a sidewalk of a street in the Israeli coastal town of Tel Aviv. Israelis in the country’s economic capital Tel Aviv have embraced electric scooters and their smart-phone rental systems, using them to zip along Mediterranean beaches and avoid heavy traffic in a city where the Jewish Sabbath prevents public transport on weekends. (AFP)

Govt.’s mega projects lift investor sentiment

The launching of mega infrastructure projects and improved tourist arrivals in the month of June compared to May in the aftermath of the April 21 Easter Sunday attacks lifted the spirits of the Colombo Stock Exchange (CSE) yesterday, sending the indices significantly upwards.

Atlas falls victim to anti-Muslim boycott campaign

Sri Lanka’s leading school and office stationery brand, Atlas has become a victim of widespread anti-Muslim boycott campaign allegedly launched by some of its competitors and parties with vested interests following the Easter Sunday attacks on April 21.

PM to present Cabinet paper to bring down BIA airfare structure

Prime Minister Ranil Wickremesinghe is scheduled to present a Cabinet memorandum to bring down the costly airfare structure at Bandaranaike International Airport (BIA) at the next Cabinet meeting.

Listed brush maker says Easter Sunday attacks could affect its operations too

Listed brush maker BPPL Holdings PLC says the Easter Sunday attacks on April 21 that dealt a severe blow to the country’s tourism industry could impact the availability of waste plastic bottles, the key raw material of their filament production process. The company uses polyethylene terephthalate or PET plastic to make filaments for their brushes and polyester yarn.

First Capital expects improvement in corporate earnings towards 4Q19

The sharp decline in interest rates and resultant lower finance costs is likely to improve the earnings of listed corproates towards 4Q19 amid faster than expected recovery in the country’s economic outlook and lower rates, according to First Capital Research.

Tourist arrivals on the rise signalling recovery

The tourist arrivals to Sri Lanka in June almost doubled from a month ago after the April 21 Easter Sunday carnage, although the arrivals were over 50 percent down from a year ago, the data released by the country’s tourism office showed.

Committee appointed to fast-track Pettah Multimodal Transport Hub

The government has appointed an apex committee tasked with identifying an implementation model for the proposed Pettah Multimodal Transport Hub (PMTH) and resolving the key issues surrounding the project, in order to finalise theproject plan.

THASL condemns hate speech; requests govt. to take action

The Tourist Hotels Association of Sri Lanka (THASL) yesterday condemned the growing number of incidents of hate speech against the ethnic and religious communities in the country, following the Easter Sunday attacks on April 21 and requested the authorities to take action against the people who create disharmony in society.

Nuwara Eliya to get US $ 50mn cable car project

The government has approved a proposal by a private company to set up a US $ 50 million cable car project in Nuwara Eliya, targeting both local and foreign tourists.

Lagarde’s ECB nomination thrusts IMF into early succession race

(Washington) REUTERS: The nomination of Christine Lagarde as European Central Bank President on Tuesday has thrust the International Monetary Fund (IMF) into an early, unanticipated search for a new leader amid a raging trade war that has darkened the outlook for global growth.

Ceylon Chamber calls for more transparency on SOFA and MCC

The Ceylon Chamber of Commerce yesterday urged the government to be more transparent on the proposed Forces Agreement (SOFA) and Millennium Challenge Corporation (MCC) agreement with the United States government and to ensure to follow the due process when entering such agreements.

Tides post-terror: Towards stability following Easter Sunday Attacks

Life is nasty, brutish and short. The horror of the Easter Sunday attack in Sri Lanka will prove Thomas Hobbes was correct. The child that lost her parents or the parent that lost their child unaware why this disgraceful act of brutality came to their lives.

South African businesses and their role in creating sustainable peace and stable economy

Following is the full address delivered by South African High Commissioner in Colombo R.P. Marks at the 180th Annual General Meeting of the Ceylon Chamber of Commerce on June 28th on the topic ‘South African Business and their Role in Creating sustainable peace and a stable economy.’

Tourism on path to recovery

Tourist arrivals which plunged to nominal levels following the Easter Sunday attacks on April 21 are now slowly recovering. The picture shows a tourist feeding an elephant in Uda Walawe. Sri Lanka earned US $ 4.4 billion from tourism in 2018, and was targeting US $ 5 billion earnings this year. Pic by Pradeep Pathirana

Egg industry sounds alarm on potential crisis

Sri Lanka’s egg producers warn that the crisis-hit broiler chick producers may supply the fertilised eggs of their excess broiler-breeder parent stocks to the market leading to a collapse of the local

Mangala withdraws plans to allow Chinese cigarette imports

Finance Minister Mangala Samaraweera had reportedly told the Cabinet of Ministers yesterday that he would withdraw the proposal to allow cigarettes imports from China for the Chinese nationals working in

Unemployment in 1Q edges up to 4.7%

Sri Lanka’s unemployment rate in the first quarter of 2019 (1Q19) edged up to 4.7 percent from 4.5 1Q18 even though 221, 612 new jobs were created from 12 months ago, the data released by the government statistics

Police chief, ex-defence secretary arrested over bombings

(Colombo) REUTERS: Sri Lankan police yesterday arrested their own chief and the former defence secretary for failing to prevent attacks on churches and luxury hotels that killed more than 250 people in April, a police spokesman said.

Japan relaxes travel advisory on Sri Lanka travel

Japan has relaxed the travel advisory imposed on Sri Lanka following the deadly Easter Sunday terrorist attacks on April 21. “In light of the stabilization of s

Shares close at 2-week high; rupee weakens

(Colombo) REUTERS: Sri Lankan shares ended firmer for a third straight session yesterday, hitting their highest close in two weeks, while the rupee edged down on importer dollar demand, market sources said. The benchmark stock index ended up