Message from the Australian High Commissioner

26 January is Australia Day, a day when Australians around the world celebrate what’s great about Australia and being Australian. It is a celebration of the many wondrous things about our country.

Stocks down amid profit-taking

The Colombo Stock Exchange (CSE) took a breather yesterday with profit-taking by investors, which resulted in the benchmark index to end in red.

Fitch revises Abans Finance to ‘A(lka)’

Fitch has revised the national long-term rating of Abans Finance PLC (AFP), a member of the Abans group, from ‘BB+(lka)’ to ‘A(lka)’, following the revision of the national long-term rating of the parent company, Abans PLC, from ‘BBB+(lka)’ to ‘AA(lka)’.

Hatch Open House returns for 2021

Having first launched on March 20, 2020, ‘Hatch Open House’, a three-month mentorship programme that connects mentors with start-up founders to provide guidance and insight to grow their start-up, successfully concluded five cohorts, despite the turbulent nature of the year and is now returning in 2021 to aid even more start-ups.

Pelwatte to establish chilling centres and milking sheds in several areas

Pelwatte Dairy Industries expresses its delight on the promise of the President to allocate special lands for the dairy farmers, following several issues pertaining to the lack of land for cattle grazing in the districts of Ampara and Anuradhapura.

International virtual textile exhibition to kick off on February 1

The Trade Development Authority of Pakistan (TDAP), under the auspices of the Commerce Ministry, will launch the first-ever virtual textile-specific trade exhibition of Pakistan from February 1-5, 2021, in light of the precautionary measures undertaken in the wake of the COVID-19 pandemic.

EU picks austerity over helping poor, UN expert says

Policy-makers in the European Union (EU) choose austerity and balanced budgets over lifting tens of millions of Europeans out of poverty, a UN report said yesterday.

SLASSCOM launches comprehensive islandwide mentoring programme targeting start-ups

For the Entrepreneurship and Innovation Forum of Sri Lanka Association for Software Services Companies (SLASSCOM), uplifting innovators and entrepreneurs, a prospective set of change makers, is considered a key objective in the pursuit of achieving the association’s Vision 2025 of achieving US $ 5 billion in revenue, 200,000 jobs and 1,000 start-ups.

Ceylon Chamber to host Outlook 2021 Forum on February 3

The Ceylon Chamber of Commerce’s (CCC) annual discourse on the year’s outlook will be held virtually on February 3, 2021, organised by the Chamber Academy.

A new face of quality learning to the education industry of Sri Lanka Rotherham London College of Education

Rotherham London College of Education located in Ja Ela, founded by Nethni Dhanapala and Randiya Fernando is an English Language College preparing students for Cambridge Assessment English Qualifications from the University of Cambridge through the British Council Sri Lanka.

Team England holds ‘Moose Clothing Cup 2021’ aloft proudly as winner of Test Match clash against hosts Sri Lanka

In keeping with its free-spirited brand personality and its pursuit of excellence by endorsing the sport of cricket, Moose Clothing Company had signed on as Title Sponsor for the Sri Lanka Vs England 2021 World Test Championship which ended successfully, with the visiting side lifting the ‘Moose Clothing Cup 2021’ championship trophy despite hosts Sri Lanka trying to prove their mettle.

Sri Lanka can achieve a greener and more prosperous future

Farmers, hoteliers and homestay owners, fishers, producers of the famous Kanthale milk curd, Ayurveda healers, fruit growers, developers, safari jeep drivers, local dwellers—all derive their livelihoods from shared natural resources offered by the Hurulu-Kaudualla-Kanthale (HKK) landscape.

A race between vaccines and virus as recoveries diverge

In just three months since we released our last forecast in October, recorded COVID-19 deaths have doubled to over two million, as new waves have lifted infections past previous peaks in many countries. In these same three months, multiple vaccines have seen unexpectedly strong success and some countries have started ambitious vaccination drives.

We’re witnessing a global surge in innovation.This is how we sustain it

From a foot-operated handwashing machine invented by a nine-year old boy in Kenya, to a new “sky park” opened in Bangkok on an disused railway line that could serve as a model for greening abandoned spaces, to the roll-out of robots in health centres in Rwanda, the pandemic has unleashed an unprecedented wave of home-grown innovation.

Tea industry eyes recovery in 2021 after lukewarm 2020

Sri Lanka’s tea industry ended the year 2020 on a dampened note as both production and exports witnessed a contraction compared to the previous year with the global pandemic leaving negative implications on the sector.

Cabraal says prevailing macro-economic conditions not reflected in currency

Sri Lankan rupee should be trading at Rs.185 to a US dollar at present according to the prevailing macro-economic fundamentals in the country, and the recent measures to freeze forward rate agreements by the Central Bank has enabled the currency to gain some value this week, according to Ajith Nivard Cabraal, the State Minister for Money & Capital Markets and State Enterprise Reforms.

Mandatory offer on On’ally Holdings recommended despite offer price falling below current market price

Interestingly, the Independent Advisor has recommended the shareholders On’ally Holdings PLC to accept the mandatory offer price of Rs.30.32 per share offered by its new controlling shareholder, Lanka Realty Investments PLC, which is below the current market price of Rs.40 per a share.

CIC records stellar 3Q amid favourable policy conditions

CIC Holdings PLC recorded robust results for the three months to December 2020 (3Q21) continuing the momentum from the previous two quarters in a sign that the company’ strategic redesigning exercise fits well with the country’s policy direction prioritising domestic agriculture and production.

New NCCSL chief stresses need to do things differently to help SMEs reach full potential

The National Chamber of Commerce of Sri Lanka (NCCSL) this week called for greater focus on SMEs and MSMEs, as a boost in the sector is essential for the national economy to overcome challenges exacerbated by COVID-19.While a number of challenges prevail in extending support to this key segment,

Central Bank mulls using AI and Machine Learning to supervise banks

Amid increased use of advanced technologies in their day-to-day management and oversight functions, the Central Bank is now mulling to make use of Artificial Intelligence (AI) and Machine Learning to assist their regulatory supervisory functions of licensed banks.

SAPPTA calls on govt. to push organic farming to increase global market share

Sri Lanka’s spices and allied products sector is bracing itself to face a contraction in production across all spices by the end of this year due to reduced access to artificial fertilizers and pesticides, however the industry urges stakeholders to switch towards using organic materials for the same, an effort which the government must encourage.

LOLC becomes most valuable firm on CSE

The Colombo Stock Exchange (CSE) yesterday saw a changing of the guard with the diversified LOLC Holdings dethroning the long-time top dog John Keells Holdings PLC (JKH) as the most valuable listed entity on the CSE.

JKH reports subdued earnings for 3Q amid virus disruptions

The isolation measures that kicked in since October, due to the second wave of COVID-19 and significantly lower revenues coming from its leisure operations, hindered the robust recovery momentum seen at John Keells Holdings PLC (JKH), as the group reported subdued profits with its key business segments feeling the pinch that came from the restrictions on travel and other economic activities.

Lankan-born Chamath Palihapitiya says he wants to be governor of California

Technology investor Chamath Palihapitiya, the early Facebook Inc. executive and minority owner of the Golden State Warriors basketball team, threw his hat in the ring on Tuesday to replace Gavin Newsom as Governor of California.

Lalin exits Amaya

Former Amaya Resorts and Spas Managing Director and Hayleys Head of Leisure Sector Lalin Samarawickrama, who relinquished his executive duties in March 2019, dispersed of his shareholding of 10 percent in the company, after almost two decades with them.

Govt. settles more foreign loans indicating tilt towards domestic borrowings

The government settled more foreign loans in 2020 in comparison to what it borrowed from foreign sources, indicating its tilt towards domestic borrowing, as the interest rates remain at record low levels.

Bairaha Farms records higher 3Q earnings despite market disruptions

Leading poultry firm Bairaha Farms PLC emerged stronger during the three months ended December 2020 (3Q21), as it successfully navigated the market disruptions caused by the pandemic and the supply challenges caused by the shortfall in maize, a key ingredient in poultry feed.

Cabinet nod to conduct feasibility for Pumped Storage Hydropower Plant

The Cabinet of Ministers approved a proposal to conduct a complete feasibility study to select a suitable location to build the country’s first Pumped Storage Hydropower Plant that has been identified under the Long-Term Power Generation Plan 2018-2037, to avoid power outages during peak demand hours.

LOLC dethrones JKH to become most valuable corporate on CSE

Diversified LOLC Holdings PLC today dethroned the long time top dog John Keells Holdings PLC (JKH) becoming the most valuable listed entity on the Colombo Stock Exchange (CSE) in terms of market capitalization.

RPCs, trade unions issued one-week ultimatum to reach wage deal

After securing the Cabinet nod to increase the daily minimum wage of plantation workers up to Rs.1000 under the provisions of the Wages Board Ordinance, Labour Minister Nimal Siripala de Silva has issued one-week ultimatum to Regional Plantation Companies (RPCs) and plantation sector trade unions to reach a consensus to implement the proposed wage hike through the collective bargaining process.