UAE seeking ‘change of policy, not regime’ in Qatar

AFP: Measures taken by the United Arab Emirates (UAE) and other nations against Qatar aim to pressure Doha into drastic policy changes, a senior UAE official told AFP yesterday.

Tea Board expects decline in tea output due to floods

The Sri Lanka Tea Board (SLTB) yesterday said it is expecting a decline in tea production in the coming months due to the recent floods that affected the tea growing districts of the country. 

Shares at 1-week closing low; foreign inflows cap losses

REUTERS: Sri Lankan shares ended down for a fourth consecutive session yesterday, and hit their lowest close in more than a week, due to profit-booking in large-cap shares such as Ceylon Tobacco Company PLC, but foreign inflows helped curb losses.

Tourist arrivals fall 2.5% in May

Tourist arrivals to Sri Lanka fell 2.5 percent year-on-year (YoY) to 121,981, with resumption of high growth of Chinese arrivals remaining the key positive highlight, putting immense pressure on the government, which hasn’t conducted a proper promotional campaign for years. 

Rupee edges up on late inward remittances

REUTERS: The Sri Lankan rupee recovered from early falls and closed slightly firmer yesterday as late inward remittances surpassed mild dollar demand from importers, dealers said.

Sri Lanka-Thailand reach consensus on FTA

Sri Lanka and Thailand have come to a consensus on a free trade agreement (FTA) to trade goods as the first step towards a comprehensive FTA that will follow in the future, Sri Lanka’s Industry and Commerce Ministry in a statement said. 

TFO joins hands with BEES to initiate tree planting campaign in Galle

 Earth became the beauty because of the interaction between living things and their surroundings.  The two have molded together to create a balance of what we would call today as nature. The only problem is that this natural balance keeps being disrupted by us humans. Time and again we see everywhere the statement that we humans are destroying the environment. 

Insee Cement connects people to nature to mark Environment Day

Insee Cement joined hands with the Base for Enthusiasts of Environmental Science and Zoology (BEEZ) of the University of Colombo and Biodiversity Sri Lanka, a network of private sector companies working together on biodiversity conservation issues, to commemorate World Environment Day with impact in a very meaningful way. 

Oceans and Sri Lanka’s future: towards a blue economy

All nations around the globe are celebrating World Oceans Day today – 08 June – under the theme of ‘Our Oceans, Our Future’. While the action focus of this year’s Ocean Day is the prevention ocean pollution due to the use of plastic, through events organized in several countries. It is more opportune in the Sri Lankan context to take a broad look at the overall theme in the light of growing interest on ‘blue ec

Hayleys Puritas provides 33,600 litres of clean drinking water to flood affected areas

In a bid to support on-going relief efforts in the wake of devastating flooding across large areas in the South Western provinces of Sri Lanka, the Hayleys Group through its environmental engineering services provider, Hayleys Puritas, announced the installation of seven water filtration systems to meet the urgent need for clean drinking water in displaced and affected communities in the Rathnapura and Galle districts. 

Wurth Lanka joins hands with A-PAD SL to provide clean drinking water in Trincomalee

Wurth Lanka (Pvt) Ltd, the subsidiary of the German motor vehicle after-market specialist, joined hands with the Asia Pacific Alliance for Disaster Management Sri Lanka (A-PAD SL) to provide clean drinking water to the people of Padavi Sri Pura village in Trincomalee by installing Reverse Osmosis (R/O) filters to ground water sources. 

PickMe’s SOS & AID features revolutionize flood relief and rescue efforts

Sri Lanka’s mobile app-based taxi hailing service PickMe has sprung into action once again with their unique in-app features - SOS and AID, supporting rescue and ongoing relief efforts for people who had been affected by Monsoon floods and landslides.

Fashion Bug marks World Environment Day with ‘Puruduwenna’

With Sri Lanka witnessing catastrophic consequences of man-made disasters each day, the need to promote awareness on our environment has never been more evident. 

Fiscal stability, FDI key for rating upgrade: Fitch

While remaining positive about Sri Lanka’s growth prospects, Fitch Ratings yesterday said continued progress in fiscal policy and increased foreign direct investment (FDI) would be crucial for Sri Lanka to move up the ratings ladder.

CAKE LABS evolves to Sysco Labs and broadens its scope

CAKE LABS, the premiere Sri Lankan restaurant technology company, which is owned by Sysco, announced the opening of a brand new office facility, along with an evolution of the company name to 

​Qatar Airways running as normal, exception of those four countries

Qatar Airways operations are running as normal with no disruptions to flights with the exception of those to the four countries Qatar Airways has been restricted to fly to.

Restyled Vitamin E Moisture Cream for 48-hour hydration: The Body Shop reveals limited time offer

The Body Shop’s best-selling Vitamin E Moisture Cream is now available in a limited edition jar designed by legendary fashion print designers Eley Kishimoto. 40 years since it was first introduced, 

Mitra Innovation client wins prestigious UK data industry award

A key client of Sri Lankan/UK-based Mitra Innovation has recently won a prestigious data industry award. 

Mobitel launches Data Gifting solution

In keeping with its growing popularity as a caring provider, Sri Lanka’s national mobile service provider, Mobitel, proudly launches a Data Gifting solution for its valued pre-paid broadband customers.

Cambio Software Engineering expands in Sri Lanka

Cambio Software Engineering Sri Lanka, the R&D software development centre for Cambio Healthcare Systems in Sweden, recently moved its operations into two, new and larger, facilities based in Colombo 3

Duo World, first Lankan company to list on OTC Markets, well-received

Duo World Inc. Founder and CEO Muhunthan Canagasooryam recently completed the introduction roadshow for Duo World’s newly listed shares on the OTC Markets, trading under the symbol DUUO. Duo World’s goal is to introduce itself to the establishments in New York’s investment community and create long-term relationships.  

SLT becomes first telco to field test Pre-5G LTE Advanced Pro Technology in South Asia

Sri Lanka’s No. 1 information communication technology (ICT) solutions provider and the licensed national backbone network operator, Sri Lanka Telecom (SLT),together with Huawei Technologies, has successfully carried out South Asia’s first comprehensive field trial of Pre-5G LTE Advanced Pro technology, laying the groundwork for the next generation of broadband technologies. 

New approach needed to fix India’s unemployment woes

Providing enough employment opportunities in India with a population of 1.34 billion is not easy. And the fact that half of the population is below the age of 25 and will soon enter the job market will only make matters worse.

Why every day should be environment day?

In the first six months of this year, Sri Lanka has experienced a number of major events that demonstrate exactly how critical managing the environment is:  drought, landslides, a garbage avalanche, flash floods — and many other events at scales that have not caught the attention of those not affected. The damage to lives and assets and the disruption to routines that make us who we are psychologically and spiritually is tough to live

RPCs pave new paths to profitability through oil palm diversification

Under the management of the Sri Lankan regional plantation companies (RPCs), the domestic plantation sector has been able to achieve important progress towards the diversification of its traditional mix of cash crops. 

Is it Loolkandura or Rothschild, first tea estate?

On the occasion of the forthcoming celebrations connected with 150 years of the tea industry in Sri Lanka and the 125th death anniversary of James Taylor, I would like to focus attention to a very important aspect.

March exports up but trade gap widens to record high

Sri Lanka, in March, managed to reverse the declining streak it saw in exports during the first two months of the year but failed to contain its overall trade deficit as the imports for the same month grew at the fastest pace in 24 months.

Sri Lanka borrows US $ 318mn from India to develop train services

Sri Lanka yesterday signed an agreement to borrow US $ 318 million from India for the development of the railways sector, a Finance Ministry statement said.  

StanChart says all set to facilitate China’s Belt and Road Initiative

Standard Chartered (StanChart) is well set to become the full financial services provider for China’s ambitious Belt and Road Initiative (BRI), which aspires to recreate the ancient Silk Road, connecting China with Asia, Africa, Europe and the Middle East with the aim of achieving mutual development. 

CSE to include non-voting shares in index market cap calculation

The Colombo Stock Exchange (CSE) yesterday announced the inclusion of non-voting shares, which are listed and traded on the exchange, in its index market capitalization (IMC) calculation.