Industrial activity expands in October

The Index of Industrial Production (IIP) which measures the activity in the country’s manufacturing sector, expanded to 104.3 this October from 101.6 in September.

Expert wants domestic apparel market players to export

Apparel manufacturers catering to the domestic market should get ready to become exporters under the government’s new trade policies

Contrade secures ISO 9001 certification

Contrade (Pvt.) Ltd, a leading industrial productions company has been able to snatch the ISO 9001 certification for its quality production and administration assurance.

Lanka Sathosa to sell freshly milled rice

The Ministerial Committee on Economic Management headed by Prime Minister Ranil Wickremesinghe has given the nod this week to import new rice volumes up to 250,000 metric tonnes to meet local market demand. 

Moody’s says govt. revenue targets ambitious, warns of fiscal slippage

Moody’s Investors Service cast its doubts over the achievement of the budgeted revenues by the Sri Lankan government in 2017,

Balasooriya Hospital receives two Silvers at FCCISL Entrepreneur Awards

Balasooriya Hospital Chairman Priyanthalal Balasooriya received the Silver award in the Large category – Service sector (National level) and the Silver award in the Large category – Aervice sector (Provincial level) at the Sri Lankan Entrepreneur of the Year Awards ceremony organised by the Federation of Chambers of Commerce and Industry of Sri Lanka (FCCISL). 

Kalapuge holds workshop for Wijeya Newspapers staff

Renowned motivational speaker and trainer Dhammika Kalapuge held a workshop recently for Wijeya Newspapers Ltd Circulation and Brand and Promotion Department employees at Hilton Colombo Residencies on the topic of ‘Be the best you are born to be’  – focusing on customer care and  team motivation.

Morocco to join Emirates A380 network

Emirates, voted the World’s Best Airline in the 2016 Skytrax World Airline Awards, has announced that it will operate the first-ever commercial Airbus A380 flight to Morocco and North Africa, when it takes the iconic double-decker aircraft to Casablanca on March 26, 2017.

Colombo Christmas Street kicks off tomorrow

The Colombo Christmas Street (CCS) 2016, a trade and fun fair organized by the Ministry of Tourism and Religious Affairs together with the Colombo Municipal Council,

Oman Air wins World Travel Awards again

For the third year running, Oman Air has been awarded World’s Leading Airline – Economy Class at the World Travel Awards. 

Kuwait Airways Colombo in joint promo with Sabre Travel Network

Kuwait Airways, the national carrier of the State of Kuwait, has joined hands with Sabre Travel Network Sri Lanka to run a joint airline promotion for all Sabre-connected travel agents in Sri-Lanka.  Kuwait Airways Country Manager Sudesh Rupasinghe and Sabre Travel Network Sri Lanka Country Manager Sanjika Perera officially inaugurated the promotion at the Kuwait Airways Colombo town office yesterday.

Most Asia markets struggle but Tokyo back in black

AFP - Most Asian markets struggled yesterday with traders spooked by geopolitical concerns following deadly attacks in Europe but Tokyo’s Nikkei returned to winning ways, reversing an earlier sell-off as the yen rebounded.

SriLankan awards Trent 700 service contract to TS&S Aerospace

Aerospace Turbine Services & Solutions LLC (TS&S Aerospace), a leading maintenance, repair and overhaul (MRO) provider for aircraft engines in the Middle East, has been selected by SriLankan Airlines to service the Trent 700 engine.

ComBank receives 10th Bank of the Year award in London

Commercial Bank Managing Director/CEO Jegan Durairatnam was in London earlier this month to accept the Bank of the Year award presented by The Banker magazine at a gala black-tie dinner at Hilton London Bankside. This was the 10th time Commercial Bank has won this prestigious award, thus becoming one of the few banks in the world to achieve this feat. 

LankaClear wins Gold at Annual Report Awards

LankaClear (Pvt.) Ltd, the operator of LankaPay – Sri Lanka’s national payment network, swept the coveted Gold award at the 52nd Annual Report Awards held recently. 

Sri Lanka extremely hospitable - Tajikistan Trade Minister

“Sri Lanka is an extremely hospitable country. This is reflected through the warm smiles and welcoming nature of the local people, which is often a rare sight elsewhere in the world,” said Tajikistan Minister of Economic Development and Trade, Nenatullo Khikmanllozoda.

Leo Burnett wins Gold at Campaign Asia Agency of the Year Awards

Leo Burnett Sri Lanka, the local office of the global advertising network Leo Burnett Worldwide, repeated its success at Campaign Asia’s Agency of the Year (AOY) awards by securing the Gold for Agency of the Year for the Rest of South Asia.

Rupee ends lower on dollar buying by banks, importers

REUTERS - The Sri Lankan rupee closed weaker yesterday on dollar buying by banks and importers, with dealers saying the rupee was expected to fall further unless the country’s central bank stepped in to raise interest rates.

Sri Lanka needs to seize economic opportunities and rectify anomalies

Ever since I saw that advertisement/cartoon in the Fortune magazine, may be thirty years or so ago, wherein an executive tells a colleague returning from lunch that while this colleague was at lunch, a new printer model came into being and went out of fashion,

Lotteries Board relaunches Development Fortune ticket with new range of prizes

The Development Lotteries Board, which has earned prestige for being the leader of introducing the latest trends to the lottery market, took measures to launch a new lottery recently.

American Banker-BAI recognize VirtusaPolaris in FinTech Forward Report

VirtusaPolaris, the market-facing brand of Virtusa Corporation and Polaris Consulting & Services, Ltd and a leading worldwide provider of information technology (IT) consulting and outsourcing services, announced that both Virtusa Corporation and Polaris Consulting & Services have been recognized by American Banker and BAI as members of the 2016 FinTech Forward 100 list of the leading technology providers in the world. 

SLID holds graduation for third batch

The graduation of the 3rd batch of the Sri Lanka Institute of Directors (SLID) ordinary members took place at World Trade Centre recently.

SampathCards continues to take brand to greater heights

Mirror Business recently met with Sampath Bank PLC Consumer Banking Senior DGM Tharaka Ranwala to get his views on the bank’s and nation’s renowned credit card brand – SampathCards.  Below are the excerpts.

Thailand will help to strengthen Sri Lankan tax system: Envoy

Thailand Ambassador Nopporn Adchariyavanich assured that his country would support Sri Lanka to strengthen the tax structure. 

Nippon Paints wins two NBEA Golds

Nippon Paints Lanka, one of the island’s largest paint manufacturers, was adjudged the Gold award winner at the recently held National Business Excellence Awards (NBEA) 2016, an annual competition conducted by the National Chamber of Commerce of Sri Lanka (NCCSL) to recognize local business enterprises for  their excellence. 

Browns awarded Silver at CA Sri Lanka Annual Report Awards 2016

Brown & Company PLC announced that its annual report was awarded Silver for the Trading sector at the 52nd Annual Report Awards competition conducted by the Institute of Chartered Accountants of Sri Lanka (CA Sri Lanka) at a glittering event that took place at Waters Edge, Battaramulla.

What Asian development can teach us about happiness

Asia figures increasingly prominently in comparative research into happiness and wellbeing.  First, there is the question of how and whether rapid ‘Asian miracle’ income growth rates have translated into happier societies. 

ZMAX Fairway Colombo takes on a leading role in the Colombo Art Biennale

Colombo will be the location of the Art Biennale 2016, an exhibition of art, architecture, music and performance centered on the theme, ‘Conceiving Space’.

IMF calls for stronger financial sector supervision and regulation

The International Monetary Fund (IMF) called for further strengthening in the financial sector supervisory and regulatory framework, as the recent rapid growth seen in credit has slightly lowered the capital adequacy ratios (CARs) of banks and finance companies. The local authorities have also welcomed technical assistance from the IMF on financial supervision and regulation and asked for further coordination with other technical assistance donor

Moody’s advocates rate hike to limit capital flight

Ratings agency Moody’s yesterday noted that Sri Lanka’s Central Bank may have to tighten its monetary policy to limit capital outflows, in the midst of the country’s reserves falling significantly over the past two months.