Laugfs group to list power subsidiary shares

Laughs Power Limited (LPL), the renewable energy subsidiary of Laugfs group, is to list its shares on the secondary Diri Savi Board of the Colombo Stock Exchange (CSE) by way of a share introduction.

Hambantota Port signs terminal service agreement with Japan’s NYK

The Hambantota International Port Group (HIPG) recently entered into a terminal service agreement (TSA) with Japanese shipping conglomerate NYK, the first roll on/roll off (RoRo) specific TSA entered into by the shipping line with a Sri Lankan p

Pound sinks into losses on Brexit deal rejection fears

(London) AFP: Sterling sank into losses in chaotic trade yesterday on fears that Britain’s Brexit draft deal might not win parliamentary approval, having earlier spiked close to US$ 1.30 on news of the agreement. At 1240 GMT, the pound w

Stocks end higher on bargain hunting; rupee weaker

(Colombo) REUTERS: Sri Lankan shares snapped two sessions of losses to end higher yesterday as investors picked up beaten down stocks. The rupee closed weaker. The benchmark stock index closed 0.40 pe

Jaffna Int’l Airport opens today

The upgraded airport in Palali will be declared open as Jaffna International Airport (JIA) today, under the patronage of President Maithripala Sirisena, Prime Minister Ranil Wickremesinghe, Transport and Civil Aviation Minister Arjuna Ranatunga and Indian High Commissioner in Sri Lanka Taranjit Singh Sandhu. The inaugural flight today by Alliance Air, a unit of Air India, will carry 30 passengers and the airline is set to operate three flights a

SL makes impressive strides in sustainable finance policy action

Sri Lanka is among eight countries advanced to the implementation stage from the preparation stage having initiated key banking reforms to drive development and fight climate change, according to the second Global Progress Report of the IFC-facilitated Sustainable Banking Network (SBN), released recently.

Rabobank, Dutch govt. fund Lankan rural bridges, vocational institute

Two agreements were signed yesterday between the government and the Netherlands’ Rabobank amounting to EUR 70.7 million (approx. Rs.14.1 billion) for the construction of rural bridges and establishment of the National Vocational Training Institute in Hingurakgoda, Polonnaruwa.

SL to borrow US $ 25mn from World Bank’s IBRD

The Cabinet of Ministers has cleared a proposal to borrow US $ 25 million from the International Bank for Reconstruction and Development (IBRD) of the World Bank to improve the efficiency and transparency of public institutions.

Govt. further relaxes rule on repatriation of export earnings

The Cabinet of Ministers has decided to further relax the rule on repatriation of export earnings by taking into consideration the appeals made by exporters, the Government Information Department said.

Govt. to set up debt management bureau under Finance Ministry

The Cabinet of Ministers has this week approved the setting up of a debt management bureau at the Finance Ministry, as a separate unit, the Government of Information Department said. At present, the country’s foreign and domestic debt are sold and managed by a department at the Central Bank while foreign loans are raised by the External Resources Department of the Finance Ministry.

Indian travel agents to hold convention in Colombo to show solidarity

The Travel Agents Association of India (TAAI) is planning to host its Annual Convention in Sri Lanka later this year.

World economy: Synchronised slowdown, precarious outlook

The global economy is in a synchronised slowdown and we are, once again, downgrading growth for 2019 to 3 percent, its slowest pace since the global financial crisis. Growth continues to be weakened by rising trade barriers and increasing geopolitical tensions.

The milky way

When Rathinam Jenaka first began working at YARLCO, she was only allowed to boil the milk. As she stood stirring the pot, she would glance over to the other women on the factory floor.

South Asia’s trajectory through innovations and disruptions in Fourth Industrial Revolution

The primary issue that arose at the plenary on ‘Promoting Innovation and Disruption in the Fourth Industrial Revolution (4IR)’, at the 12th South Asia Economic Summit (SAES XII), organised by the Institute of Policy Studies of Sri Lanka, was the role of disruption in the status quo.

Cloud adoption in Asia “absolutely phenomenal”: Oracle executive

Chris Chelliah Group Vice President & Chief Architect, Cloud Platform, APAC, Japan & EMEA. He has more than 24 years of experience in the information systems industry; 20 of those years have been with Oracle across different portfolios in Asia Pacific, Europe and North America.

Hans calls on pvt. sector to ignite nation’s mojo

The Ceylon Chamber of Commerce (CCC) chief this week called the private sector to take the lead in breaking out of the middle income trap with positivity and greater focus on inclusivity, instead of waiting for the economic growth to return.

Trade war cuts global growth to lowest since financial crisis: IMF

(Washington) REUTERS: The U.S.-China trade war will cut 2019 global growth to its slowest pace since the 2008-2009 financial crisis, the International Monetary Fund warned yesterday, adding that the outlook could darken considerably if trade tensions remain unresolved. The IMF said its latest Worl

Test flight from India lands at Jaffna Int’l Airport

A test flight was competed yesterday from Chennai to Palali Airport, which is to be declared open as the Jaffna International Airport (JIA) tomorrow (17th). Indian aviation experts and specialists, who were on board the test flight, inspected the runway and other facilities at the airport. Alliance Air, an affiliate of Air India, has confirmed to operate thre

Manufacturing, services activities see slowdown in September

Sri Lanka’s manufacturing and services sector activities expanded in the month of September, albeit at a slower pace compared to August, according to the Central Bank’s SL Purchasing Managers’ Index (PMI). Manufacturing activities recorded a PMI index value of 54.7 percent, down from 1.9 index points in August. The deceleration in activities was mainly driven by the slowdown in production in manufacturing of food & beverages and textiles & wearin

Stocks slip from near 6-week high on profit-taking; rupee weakens

(Colombo) REUTERS: Sri Lankan stocks ended weaker yesterday, snapping a run of seven straight gaining sessions to slip from a near six-week high hit in the previous session as investors booked profits. The rupee currency ended weaker. The benchmark stock index ended down 0.5 percent at 5,840.48, slipping from its highest close since Sept. 3. So far this year, the index has dropped 3.50 percent. Meanwhile, the rupee was 0.49 percent

Port City land sales to begin first half of next year

Land sales of the Colombo Port City is set to begin within the first half of next year with both government and the project company preparing to float the tenders for land plots, Mirror Business learns.

Long shadow of govt. debt

Sri Lanka’s government debt burden is weighing heavily on the economy in respect of mounting debt service payments – a problem aggravated by steep depreciation of the rupee against major foreign currencies. In terms of the year-end exchange rate (Rs/US $), the rupee depreciated by 22 percent between 2016 and 2018.

Poverty-tackling trio win Nobel economics prize

(Stockholm) REUTERS: U.S.-based economists Abhijit Banerjee, Esther Duflo and Michael Kremer won the 2019 Nobel Economics Prize yesterday for their work in fighting poverty that has helped millions of children around the world.

Stocks hit near 6-week high; rupee weakens

(Colombo) REUTERS: Sri Lankan stocks rose for the seventh straight session yesterday to hit a near six-week high as beverage and banking shares rallied. However, the rupee ended weaker.

Sajith to formalise private sector input in economic policymaking

New Democratic Front presidential candidate Sajith Premadasa last week pledged to formalise the private sector consultative process for scientific and rational economic policymaking, under a revamped administration.

Paradigm shift in export financing urged for export sector revival

Sri Lanka’s banking sector is urged to make a paradigm shift in export financing by moving away from the outdated practices in lending and risk management to support the country’s exporters to break into new export markets while venturing into new product lines, in order to stimulate the economy.

MoU signed for Sri Lanka’s first cable car project

A memorandum of understanding (MoU) was signed on Sunday for Sri Lanka’s first cable car project, which is to be set up in Nuwara Eliya, targeting both local and foreign tourists.

August trade deficit narrows with continued decline in imports

Sri Lanka’s imports, supported by lower vehicle and gold imports, continued to decline while exports largely recovered from its recent decline to see the island nation’s trade deficit narrowing in August, the trade data released by the Central Bank showed yesterday.

Who will address issue of ageing time bomb?

All 35 presidential candidates need to address the ageing time bomb, which is facing Sri Lanka today.

Cigarette smuggling: Hype vs. reality

In the run up to elections, Sri Lanka is once again witnessing various news activities highlighting how the government is losing revenue due to increased consumption of illicit cigarettes and beedi. However, the wider government policy on tobacco control is aimed to reduce smoking rates and the related direct and indirect costs, which was estimated to amount to 6 percent of government revenue in 2015, through taxation.