With the upcoming parliamentary elections in August, the government is urged to present a medium term budgetary framework balancing the contradictory objectives of an immediate need for counter-cyclical fiscal policy to bounce back from the COVID-19

The Colombo Stock Exchange (CSE) has announced changes in the S&P Sri Lanka 20 index constituents made by S&P Dow Jones Indices, at the 2020 mid-year index rebalance.

The decisions that were taken last week to further support the economy by way of Central Bank liquidity were neither instantaneous nor a case of being succumbed to the president’s outburst but were measures that were well underway after extensive d

The All Share Price Index (ASPI) of the Colombo Stock Exchange (CSE) yesterday crossed the 5,000-point threshold for the first time in three months.

Ranjith Kodituwakku has been appointed as Chief Executive Officer/General Manager of People’s Bank, with effect from June 19, 2020.

As Sri Lanka’s regular target markets for tourism are showing slim chances of opening up for travel in the immediate future, due to being heavily impacted by the coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic, the representatives of the sector stressed the need t

The Central Bank has capped the interest rate chargeable from those who become eligible for the moratorium at 7 percent on deferred instalments, as the banks raised concerns about the interest cost that they are compelled to make in respect of the de

Sri Lanka Export Development Board (EDB) has launched a digital export promotion programme to push the sector towards speedy recovery and iron out the negative impacts caused by the outbreak of the COVID-19 pandemic.

The project company, CHEC Port City Colombo (Pvt) Ltd., is planning to open the beach in the Colombo Port City to the public next year, the Urban Development, Water Supply and Housing Ministry said.

Some leeway has been granted to commercial banks and the National Savings Bank (NSB) to buy sovereign bonds issued by Sri Lanka after three months of suspension, but such purchases should be made using new foreign currency inflows received by the ban

In an effort to finance a grassroots revival of the Sri Lankan economy in the wake of the COVID-19 pandemic, HNB PLC has announced the launch of a Rs.5 billion relief fund, which will be used to provide working capital support to the bank’s sizeabl

Pharmaceutical, FMCG and personal care sectors acted largely as a defence against the disruptions brought on by the coronavirus pandemic at Hemas Holdings PLC during the quarter ended March 31, 2020 (4Q20), as they to a larger degree blunted the nega

The Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) has cautioned the general public against the growing number of unsolicited phone calls from persons claiming to be agents of international stock broker firms, as an organised group appears to be coaxing gu

Australia’s prime minister revealed yesterday his country was under a broad cyberattack from a “state-based actor” targeting government, public services and businesses, with suspicions falling on China.

US President Donald Trump is pursuing a “reset” of the World Trade Organization which he believes has treated American interests unfairly, US Trade Representative Robert Lighthizer said this week.

Asian equities rose yesterday as investors went into the weekend on an upbeat note, with an eye on the easing of lockdowns and mostly improving economic data, which offset geopolitical tensions and second wave worries.

DTW International (Pvt) Ltd (DTW) in partnership with UPL Limited (UPL) donated a high tech ULV fogging equipment to combat the COVID-19 pandemic in response to the immediate need at the Infectious Disease Hospital (IDH) of Sri Lanka, the main nerve

Seylan Bank has been endorsed as a financially stable organisation with performance excellence across the board by Fitch Ratings, with the bank’s national long-term rating revised upward, from ‘A-(lka)’ to ‘A(lka).

Developing Asia will barely grow in 2020 as containment measures to address the coronavirus disease (COVID-19) pandemic hamper economic activity and weaken external demand, according to a new set of forecasts from the Asian Development Bank (ADB).

Sri Lankan exporters are cautiously optimistic on business continuity as a large number of firms have identified new business opportunities arising from the needs combating the COVID-19 pandemic, a survey carried out by USAID revealed.

The Tourism Development Authority (SLTDA) has announced a concessionary loan scheme for struggling tourist establishments to fund salary payments of estimated 144,000 employees during next six months based on 2019 EPF payment records.

The Hayleys group’s geographical and sectoral diversity enabled it to deliver earnings growth in an extremely challenging year, with profit-after-tax increasing by 5 percent year-on-year (YoY) and profit attributable to equity holders growing by 40

Sri Lanka’s latest credit and refinancing support for private sector has been lauded by the country’s micro and SME sectors.

In line with the government’s rapid development plans for SME, agriculture and social development, the Bank of Ceylon (BOC) will extend its loan facilities to a number of selected sectors.

Business conglomerate, Carson Cumberbatch PLC, extended support to Sri Lanka’s healthcare sector over the past few months in its effort to combat and contain the spread of COVID-19 in the country.

European stock markets eased yesterday after recent gains, with the Bank of England set to unveil more massive cash stimulus for Britain’s virus-hit economy. Earlier, Asian equity indices closed mixed after a two-day rally, with traders weighing co

As the first course of action of the joint committee between the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) and Colombo Stock Exchange (CSE), it has been decided to convert the paper-based statements to electronic form and to facilitate the companies l

Sri Lanka’s condominium sector is observed to be gradually moving towards a positive growth trajectory, after a few months of slowdown and is witnessing fresh interest from the homeowner market segment.

Softlogic Invest, the asset management arm of Softlogic Capital PLC, recently launched two unit trusts or mutual funds — Softlogic Equity Fund and Softlogic Money Market Fund, after obtaining the licence from the Securities and Exchange Commission