New Monetary Law Act to parliament next month

Finance Minister Mangala Samaraweera is to present the new Monetary Law Act that aims to depoliticise the Central Bank (CB) to the parliament next month. “If there is one reform that will stabilise Sri Lanka’s macro economy, that will be the depoliticisation and ensuring the independence of the Central Bank. That is what will be done when

Rupee ends weaker

COLOMBO (Reuters) - Sri Lankan rupee closed weaker yesterday on importer dollar demand, while foreign outflows from government securities also weighed on the currency. Equities snapped two consecu

SL Economic Summit 2019 opens today

The country’s foremost economic event, Sri Lanka Economic Summit (SLES) 2019, kicks off at Cinnamon Grand Colombo, today. The two-day event is themed around Recalibrating Sri Lanka’s Economic Trajectory Towards 2025, to guide Sri Lanka’s journey towards development and prosperity. Today’s event brings together over 450 local and international participants consisting of prominent business leaders, policymakers and experts, who play a key role in

Hambantota International Port ties knot with Thailand’s Ranong Port

The Hambantota International Port (HIP) signed an agreement for port-to-port cooperation with the Ranong Port in Thailand. The partnership is a bid to build synergi

IFC evaluating nearly US $ 250mn investment opportunities in Sri Lanka’s private sector

The International Finance Corporation (IFC), the private sector arm of the World Bank Group, is evaluating nearly US $ 250 million worth of investment opportunities in Sri Lanka’s private sector. “We are currently evaluating perspective investm

China’s Hainan Group to set up rubber zone in Kegalle next year

The first specialised free trade zone for rubber-based value-added exports of China Hainan Rubber Industry Group Co. Ltd will be set up in Kegalle next year. “We are negotiating with Chin

AirAsia to launch Colombo-Bangkok direct flights

AirAsia marks another foray into South Asia by offering direct services between Colombo in Sri Lanka and Thailand’s capital city of Bangkok. This four-time weekly flight service is slated to commence operation again on November 11, 2019 with special promotional all-in fares starting from Rs.18,999 one way to experience the vibrancy of Thailand and beyon

Lotus Tower - SLT’s gigantic technological achievement

The ‘Lotus Tower – Multifunctional TV and Telecommunications Tower’, foreseen to be one of the significant landmarks of the country, is Sri Lanka Telecom’s (SLT) epic accomplishment in the arena of technological infrastructur

Saudi, Gulf stocks fall after attack on Aramco oil plants

DUBAI (Reuters) - Saudi stocks plunged 2.3 percent as the market opened yesterday, after attacks on two plants at the heart of the kingdom’s oil industry a day earlier knocked out more than half of Saudi crude output.

ECT delay a deterrent to export-led growth: expert

Sri Lanka has been striving to embark on an export-led growth model, but this aspiration is challenged given the prolonged delay in the development of Colombo Port’s East Container Terminal (ECT) and man

Ex-PM Cameron slams Johnson over Brexit

LONDON (AFP) - Former British prime minister David Cameron launched a blistering attack on the UK’s current leader Boris Johnson in extracts of his memoirs published yesterday, accusing him of only backing Brexit to further his own career.

Sri Lanka to recruit more tax-payer paid doctors

ECONOMYNEXT – Sri Lanka’s tax-payer funded health service is running below the optimal level of doctors required and more will be recruited by the end of next year, parliament was told. Sri Lanka’s state health service

French group to open two hotels in Damascus

PARIS (AFP) - Louvre Hotels Group, owned by China’s Jin Jiang, has signed an agreement to open two hotels under its own name in Damascus, it said during the weekend, a day after the UN announced an internal investigation into the bombing of hospitals in Syria. The confirmation of the two hotels ope

Large US banks sweating the move to lower interest rates

NEW YORK (AFP) - President Donald Trump’s attacks on the US Federal Reserve make financial markets cringe, but his demand for zero interest rates makes banks sweat. As the Fed reverses course and is poised to cut the benchmark lending rate a second time on Wednesday, large US banks have signaled they expect a bigger hit to their bottom line. Banks including JPMorgan Chase and We

Sunshine Holdings supports Economic Summit 2019

For the fifth consecutive year, Sri Lanka’s diversified conglomerate Sunshine Holdings PLC will support the country’s premier summit for key policymakers, business leaders, thought leaders and experts, the Economi

SriLankan bans older 15-inch MacBook Pro on flight

SriLankan Airlines yesterday said it is not allowing older generation 15-inch Apple MacBook Pro units on their planes over fire safety risk. Apple has determined that, in a limited number of older generation 15-inch MacBook

Colombo Light Rail set to be SL’s first women-friendly public transport system

The Japan International Cooperation Agency (JICA) will provide technical assistance to strengthen the Gender Action Plan (GAP) for Colombo Light Rail, towards making it the first woman-friendly public transport system in Sri Lanka. The Memorandum for this assist

BAT stubs out 2300 jobs, as vaping casts cloud

(LONDON) AFP: British American Tobacco (BAT) yesterday said it planned to cut 2,300 jobs globally by January as its new boss seeks to drive revenues in controversial e-cigarettes. “My goal is to oversee a step change in new category growth and significantly simplify our current ways of working and business processes, whilst delivering long-term sustainable returns for our shareholders,” Chief E

Hyundai appoints Abans Auto as authorised distributor for Sri Lanka

Hyundai Motor Company has announced Abans Auto as the authorised distributor for Sri Lanka. As the authorised

SAPPTA dismisses minimum export price for Lankan cinnamon

Responding to a recent newspaper article where it was suggested to introduce a minimum export price (MEP) for Sri Lankan cinnamon to prevent unhealthy competition, the management committee of the Spices & Allied Products Producers’ & Traders’ Association (SAPPTA) dismissed such claims and said the competition between Sri Lankan cinnamon and Cassia is keeping prices low. “An individual has suggested recently in the print media that there is intens

Rupee ends flat; stocks edge up

REUTERS: Sri Lanka’s rupee closed flat yesterday, with foreign outflows from government securities showing a declining trend, while equities ended a tad firmer. The rupee ended flat at 180.25/45 per dollar ahead of a long weekend. The currency gained 0.33 percent this week and is up 1.3 percent this year. Markets are closed for a Buddhist r

NOTICE

There will be no Mirror Business tomorrow in view of today’s Poya holiday. The next issue will be on Monday (16).

Women key to achieving upper-middle-income status, says ADB

As Sri Lanka is in the midst of making a transition to the upper-middle-income status, the Asian Development Bank (ADB) this week asserted that focus on women entrepreneurship is becoming increasin

Hong Kong Exchanges proposes US $ 39bn London Stock Exchange takeover

(London) REUTERS: The Hong Kong Exchanges and Clearing Limited has proposed a 31.6 billion pound (US $ 39 billion) takeover of the London Stock Exchange, it said yesterday, just weeks after the London bourse announced a plan to merge with data company Refinitiv.

Fed should get US interest rate ‘down to ZERO, or less’: Trump

(Washington) AFP: President Donald Trump wants US “interest rates down to ZERO, or less,” he tweeted yesterday amid widespread expectations that the Federal Reserve will cut rates later this month.

Safran S’pore bags UL aircraft landing gear deal

The Singaporean unit of the French landing gear company, Safran Landing Systems, has bagged a contract to renovate the landing gear of six A330-200 aircraft of the national carrier, SriLankan Airlines. The Cabinet Office yeste

Rupee gains for third straight session; stocks steady

(Colombo) REUTERS: Sri Lanka’s rupee closed a tad firmer yesterday with foreign outflows from government securities showing a declining trend, while stocks ended steady. The rupee ended 0.03 percent firmer at 180.25/45 per dollar. It closed at 180.30/50 on Tuesday after gaining in the two sessions.

Private sector renews call for stability and policy consistency from next political leadership

Sri Lanka’s private sector, which has been repeatedly affected in recent times due to lack of stability in the operating environment, presented their ‘wish list’ for the next political leadership yesterda

Colombo’s first elevated highway construction begins

Prime Minister Ranil Wickremesinghe yesterday launched the construction work of the elevated highway, which is to be constructed from the New Kelani Bridge to Colombo Port City. The construction of 5.9 km Port Access Road and related facilities will be funded by a US$ 300 million loan from the Asian Development Bank (ADB). The leading construction c

Effective public financial mgt. crucial to achieve economic prosperity: CB Governor

Considering the important role government activities play in an economy, the need for effective public financial management, which is built on trustworthiness of accountants, cannot be overlooked if a nation strives to achieve economic prosperity. “Successful economies deliver sustai