Sri Lanka’s tourism earnings grow 5.9% in 1Q19

Sri Lanka’s tourism earnings grew by 5.9 percent Year-on-Year (YoY) to US$ 1.39 billion in the first quarter of the year, according to Central Bank (CB) estimates. The growth in tourist arrivals averaged to 4.6 percent in the first quarter with 740,600 foreigners travelling to the island nation. In March, the country earned US$458.6 million from tourism, up 6 percent from US$ 432.8 million a year earlier. Tourist

Trump, Europe ramp up tariff threats in aircraft dispute

REUTERS - U.S. President Donald Trump said yesterday the United States would impose tariffs on US$ 11 billion worth of European Union products, heightening tensions over a long-running transatlantic aircraft subsidy dispute that threatens to become a broader trade battle. The two sides have been locked in a years-lo

Economic forces, not tariffs, drive changes in trade balances

Bilateral trade balances (the difference in the value of exports and imports between two countries) have come under scrutiny recently. Some policymakers are concerned that their large and rising size are the result of uneven measures that distort international trade. But is a focus on bilateral trade balances the right one? The short answer is no. Our research in Chapter 4 of the April 2019 World Economic Outlook finds that a tariff-induced chang

What will it take to make Sri Lanka a developed nation?

Prime Minister Ranil Wickremesinghe and business tycoon Dammika Perera gave their perspectives at the packed Fireside, organised by the Daily FT, International Chamber of Commerce Sri Lanka and CIMA, at The Hilton Colombo, recently, saying Sri Lanka has a complex set of problems, as it is a low-middle-income country with very high debt, an aging population and limited exports and investment. Sri Lanka is facing a bunching of debt till about

IPS asserts SL to advance focus on implementing action plans before jumping to another

Sri Lanka’s prominent economic think-tank, the Institute of Policy Studies (IPS), asserted that the island nation should invest much of its focus on the implementing action plans, so that it fulfills the aspired goals and get on par with its fast growing regional peers in terms of economic growth realization.“There needs to be efficiency in the implementation. That should be the focus in the interim and then (th

Rupee ends weaker on importer dollar demand; stocks down

REUTERS: The Sri Lankan rupee ended weaker yesterday due to importer dollar demand, but market sources said remittances ahead of the traditional new year will help boost the currency, while stocks extended losses into a third session. After the markets closed on Monday, Sri L

SLT plans to double PEO TV subscriber base to one million in two years

Sri Lanka Telecom (SLT) is planning to double its PEO TV subscriber base to one million in two years with the integration of over-the-top (OTT) services and IPTV experiences through the recently launched PEOTV GO application a

Saudi Aramco bumps up bond issue to US$12 bn: bank source

PARIS (AFP) - Energy giant Saudi Aramco yesterday raised the size of a bond issue aimed at helping to diversify the Saudi economy to US$12 billion from an initial US $10 billion target following heavy demand, a source close to the operation told AFP. Demand for the issue comprising several bond m

Govt. plans to bring down high market interest rates by 200bps

As Sri Lanka’s bank credit extended to the private sector decelerated significantly in the first two months of the year, the government plans to bring down the high market interest rates by 200 basis points, to maintain private sector credit growth at 13.5 percent this year, to reach the anticipated 4 percent GDP growth. Central Bank Governor Dr. Indrajit Coomaraswamy yesterday told reporters in Colombo that Prime Minister Ranil Wickremesinghe re

SL a soft target for cybercriminals: Microsoft

As Sri Lanka embarks on ambitious tech projects, more companies are likely to be exposed to attacks than the global average, according to Microsoft. Even as businesses capitalize on the latest security intelligence and protections to stay ahead in the evolving cybersecurity landscape, Microsoft says Sri Lanka continues to be an attractive region for cybercriminals.

WB revises Sri Lanka’s GDP growth projection to 3.5% this year

The World Bank (WB) has revised Sri Lanka’s gross domestic product (GDP) growth to 3.5 percent this year, from an earlier forecast of 4 percent, well below the projected growth for South Asia. The WB earlier this year forecasted that Sr

Rupee firmer on dollar inflows; stocks extend losses

(Colombo) REUTERS: The Sri Lankan rupee ended firmer yesterday due to dollar inflows from foreign remittances ahead of the traditional new year later this week, sources said, while stocks extended losses into a second session. After the markets closed yesterday, Sri

Real-time notifications for transactions in GSecs

Introducing another feature for the investments and to enhance the awareness of investors in the government securities, the Central Bank, which operates and maintains the Lanka Secure System, has introduced an SMS/email alert service from March 25, 2019.

CB sees SL’s current account deficit moving below 2.3% of GDP this year

The Central Bank sees Sri Lanka’s current account deficit moving below the projected 2.3 percent of GDP this year, as the trade deficit slashed to US $ 1.06 billion in the first two months of the year, compared to US $ 2.1 billion recorded in the January to February period last year. Central Bank Governor Dr. Indrajit Coomaraswamy said that the government was earlier targeting a current account deficit to be contained to 2.3 percent of GDP. Howev

Capital TRUST acquires Taxiyak and launches Taxiya

Capital TRUST Mobility Solutions (Pvt) Ltd, a subsidiary of Capital TRUST Holdings Limited is launching Taxiya, a mobile taxi hailing service. Focusing on safety, reliability, customer convenience and enhanced benefits to the drivers, Taxiya is set to zoom into the future of Sri Lanka’s organized Taxi service industry. Taxiyak was already a player in the taxi service industry in Sri Lanka and has experienced the market for a couple of years. The

Tourist arrivals record single digit growth for fourth straight month in March

Tourist arrivals grew moderately at 4.7 percent Year-on-Year (YoY) in March to 244,328 visitors amidst a notable decline in arrivals from Northern and Western European countries despite the double digit growth in arrivals recorded from the Russian Federation, United States, Australia and China, data released by Sri Lanka Tourism Development Authority (SLTDA) showed. During the month, the largest source market for

Sri Lanka eyes special preferential trade pact in post-Brexit UK

Sri Lanka plans to formally commence negotiations for a special bilateral preferential trade agreement with United Kingdom (UK) to promote sustainable bilateral trade between the two countries, with a view of preparing itself for

Tundra Fund sees great upside for Sri Lankan stocks following presidential election

Foreign investors appear to have found the next big thing to upend the direction of the sluggish Sri Lankan stock market, as they pin hopes on the upcoming presidential election to change fortunes of those who have lost wealth and await until they could cash in from the opportunity.

Hyundai Motor denies tie-up with Tencent on driverless car software

SEOUL (Reuters) - South Korean automaker Hyundai Motor Co yesterday denied a report that it had signed a preliminary deal with Chinese technology firm Tencent Holdings to develop software for driverless vehicles. Hyundai’s comments come a day after South Korea’s Maeil Business Newspaper cited unnamed industry sources on Saturday saying that the two companies planned to conduct joint research and development on safety and security systems for sel

Unrestricted palm oil imports eroding Lanka’s coconut industry - CGASL

Coconut growers charged that unrestricted palm oil imports into the country combined with lack of government support are eroding Sri Lanka’s coconut industry, with already 80 percent of the coconut mills shut down. “The unconstrained import of palm oil is creatin

World’s first 5G phone released in South Korea

SEOUL (AFP) - Telecom giant Samsung Electronics yesterday released the Galaxy S10 5G, the world’s first available smartphone with built-in fifth-generation communications, as South Korea seeks to build a lead in the transformative technology.

Asian markets mostly up as China, US hail trade talk’s progress

HONG KONG (AFP) - Asian markets mostly rose in holiday-thinned trade yesterday on hopes that China and the United States will hammer out a trade deal after both sides sounded notes of optimism.

US judge orders talks between Tesla’s Musk, securities regulators

NEW YORK (AFP) - A federal judge on Thursday gave Tesla chief executive Elon Musk and US securities regulators two weeks to resolve their differences over Musk’s prolific social media use. The Securities and Exchange Commission had argued Musk should b

World Bank sees Venezuela GDP contracting another 25% by year end

WASHINGTON (AFP) - The economy in crisis-hit Venezuela is expected to contract a further 25 percent in 2019, the World Bank said this week. “Real GDP contracted by 17.7 percent in 2018 and is likely to fall by 25.0 percent in 2019, which would imply a cumulative fall in GDP of 60 percent since 2013,” the bank said in its most recent biannual report on Latin America and th

Japan court extends Ghosn detention until April 14

TOKYO (AFP) - Former Nissan boss Carlos Ghosn will remain in custody until at least April 14, a Japanese court ruled yesterday, as prosecutors quiz him over fresh allegations of financial misconduct. The Tokyo District Court said in a statement it ha

France insists on digital tax despite US anger

BUCHAREST (AFP) - France will stick to plans for a tax on digital giants such as Facebook and Apple, Finance Minister Bruno Le Maire said yesterday, despite angry opposition from Washington. Last month, France unveile

British PM asks EU to delay Brexit until June 30

LONDON (AFP) - Prime Minister Theresa May asked the European Union yesterday to delay Britain’s departure from the bloc until June 30, with the extension ending earlier if parliament approves her

Rupee ends weaker; stocks retreat from 3-1/2-week high

REUTERS: The Sri Lankan rupee ended weaker yesterday due to dollar demand as importers purchased the greenback after the local currency’s recent gains, sources said; while stocks slipped from a 3-1/2-week high hit in the previous session. The currency dipped 0.1 percent to end at 174.90/175.00 to the do

ADB forecasts 3.6% growth for Sri Lanka

The Asian Development Bank yesterday made a rather optimistic forecast on Sri Lanka’s economic growth for this year and the next, although the development lender admitted the ongoing scheduled power cuts and freak weather haven’t been factored into the growth numbers. Releasing its flag

Visa on arrival for 39 countries from May 1

The Cabinet of Ministers has approved a proposal by the Tourism Minister to issue visa on arrival to tourists visiting Sri Lanka from 39 countries. Cabinet has also decided to issue these visas on gratis basis as an incentive to attract tourists. The programme will be a pilot p