Ravi and Rishad on inspection tour

Finance Minister Ravi Karunanayake and Industry and Commerce Minister Rishad Bathiudeen went on an inspection tour in Pettah yesterday.It was aimed at checking whether sufficient stocks of essential goods are available for the festive season  

SriLankan celebrates resumption of all day operations at BIA

SriLankan Airlines yesterday celebrated the return to all day operations at its hub in Colombo’s Bandaranaike International Airport (BIA) by feting all passengers who arrived on the first flight of the day with traditional Sri Lankan milk rice and sweetmeats. 

Hilton inks landmark deal to manage six Lankan properties

The local tourism scene will see the addition of a series of luxury properties within the next five years with the global hospitality giant, Hilton Hotels & Resorts, yesterday inking a deal with a local property developer to manage six top-notch leisure properties. 

Cargills commissions SL’s largest multi-product dairy manufacturing plant

The Cargills group this week commissioned the country’s largest multi-product dairy manufacturing plant in Banduragoda, Gampaha, as a part of its Rs.3 billion dairy expansion project which began two years ago. 

Ceylon Tea global tea promotional campaign delayed yet again

Sri Lanka’s tea industry has hit another stumbling block with the much-awaited global promotional campaign being put off for another few more months due to the shortcomings in the tender procedures and questionable capabilities of some of the selected service providers, Mirror Business learns.  

Govt. tax policy blocking inclusive growth bashed

An economist has criticized the government’s tax policy on vehicle imports and the recent credit restrictions imposed on vehicle financing, 

Exchanging scrapped notes

An Indian woman reads a notice board as she stands in a queue outside the Reserve Bank of India (RBI) to exchange old 500 and 1000 currency notes in Mumbai on yesterday. 

Lake House Printers and India’s Manipal Technologies launch digital banking solution

India’s Manipal Technologies Limited (MTL) in association with Sri Lanka’s Lake House Printers and Publishers PLC (LHPP) yesterday launched a cutting-edge digital banking solution to cater to the growing needs of the Lankan banks and their customers.

Four airlines show interest in SriLankan, but not convincing, says Hashim

The national carrier, SriLankan Airlines, which has been experiencing massive turbulences lately, has attracted interest from two international airlines and two regional airlines, a top minister in the coalition government said. 

EIB pledges to ramp up investments in Sri Lanka

The world’s largest multilateral lender, the European Investment Bank (EIB), will be ramping up its funding to Sri Lanka due to the efforts made by the government, the head of the bank’s delegation currently in town said yesterday during a media briefing held at the Finance Ministry.

More tourism gains for SL

Tourists watch a Sri Lankan elephant walk through a field in the Minneriya National Park. Sri Lanka earned US $ 3.52 billion from tourism in 2016 on the back of little over two million tourists visiting the country (AFP)

Pride of ownership!

A woman checks out a classic Volkswagen Beetle during the 18th ‘Pride of Ownership Drive’ parade held in Colombo yesterday. The event was organized by the Volkswagen Beetle Owners’ Club   

A school girl leaves a white rose

A school girl leaves a white rose in front of a commemoration plaque with the names of the Germanwings crash victims on the second anniversary of the accident in the French Alpes,

Fast-changing Colombo landscape

An aerial shot of the Colombo Port City or Colombo International Financial City, of which the land reclamation is underway. 

Prices set to rise more

A banana vendor in Colombo reads a newspaper. Sri Lanka’s countrywide consumer prices rose 8.2 percent in February with food prices rising 0.31 percent,

February consumer prices soar 8.2% prompting Monetary Board to act fast

The food and non-food prices measured by the national consumer price index surged 8.2 percent during the 12 months to February 2017, jumping from 6.5 percent from a year ago, the data released by the statistics office showed. 

CSE says first leg of capital market promotion in Australia a success

The ‘Invest Sri Lanka’ investor forum hosted in Sydney yesterday by the Colombo Stock Exchange (CSE) in association with the Securities and Exchange Commission of Sri Lanka (SEC) drew over 150 participants including institutional investors, high-net-worth individuals, Sri Lankans living in Sydney and other individuals with a business interest in Sri Lanka. 

Sri Lanka February tea output falls 19.7%

REUTERS: Sri Lanka’s tea output fell 19.7 percent in February compared to a year earlier due to drought during the past six months and the lack of fertiliser use, the state-run Tea Board said. Production in the first two months of the year also dropped 17.1 percent compared to the same period last year. 

Malik meets Vietnamese envoy

The Ambassador of Vietnam to Sri Lanka, Phan Kieu Thu paid a courtesy call on Development Strategies and International Trade Minister Malik Samarawickrama at the ministry.  

Govt. says number of loss making SOEs reduced

Most of Sri Lanka’s state-owned enterprises (SOEs) have stopped bleeding under the ‘good governance’ regime, after it took over two years ago, Sri Lanka’s Finance Minister Ravi Karunanayake said this week.

FinMin says delay unlikely in IMF third tranche

The third tranche of the International Monetary Fund’s (IMF) US $ 1.5 billion Extended Fund Facility (EFF) would not be delayed in mid-2017 despite Sri Lanka’s inability to meet the foreign reserve targets set by the programme, the country’s Finance Minister Ravi Karunanayake told reporters in Colombo, yesterday. 

SL corporate earnings growth slows down in 4Q

Sri Lanka’s listed company earnings growth slowed substantially during the quarter ended in December 31, 2016 (4Q16), in comparison to the previous quarter’s earnings growth, an analysis by an independent research house showed. 

Garbage mountain!

The Meethotamulla garbage dump is seen from a high-rise building in Colombo. The government has so far failed to come up with a plausible solution to the garbage disposal problem plaguing Colombo and the suburbs despite the launch of the ambitious Megapolis plan targeting the Western Province 

Holi enthusiasm grips Colombo

The colourful Indian festival Holi was celebrated at the Paradise Beach Hotel in Mount Lavinia yesterday. The colourful event, which was organized by the ‘Colombo Indians’ drew a large crowd

Germany promises continued support for tourism development

Sri Lanka is targeting 150,000 German tourists this year. This was revealed during a meeting between Tourism Development Minister John Amaratunga and the Federal Minister for Economic Affairs and Energy, Brigitte Zypries on the sidelines of the ongoing ITB in Berlin this week. Zypries is also the Minister of Tourism in Germany. 

Govt. mulls introducing military grade filter to fight CKDu

Sri Lankans with poor access to clean drinking water will be able to use British military grade ‘Lifesaver’ water filters for an affordable price in the near future to convert polluted water available in their community to clean water, Sri Lanka’s Finance Minister said yesterday.

CSE rings bell for gender equality

In celebration of the International Women’s Day, the Colombo Stock Exchange (CSE) yesterday rang the trading floor bell in a bid to highlight the need for achieving gender equality in the workplace, marketplace and community. 

Top Chinese delegation inspects H’tota port, airport

The Board of Investment (BOI) said it recently hosted a delegation consisting of senior officials from Chinese People’s Political Consultative Conference of Shanghai (CPPCC).  

NZ biz delegation upbeat over Lankan investment prospects

A business delegation of 14 New Zealand companies arrived in Sri Lanka this week to further strengthen business links between the two countries. 

European fund managers visit CSE

Three large European funds led by Thomas Vester of LGM Investments, Tina Ronnholm of Swedish National Pension Fund and Peter F.Tobeason of Silvercrest Asset Management Group...