France relaxes travel advisory to SL

The government of France yesterday relaxed the travel advisory to Sri Lanka, from recommending ‘only essential travel’ to ‘exercise caution’.

UN and govt. ink SDG Cooperation Framework for 2023 - 2027

The United Nations (UN) in Sri Lanka and government partners today inked the Sustainable Development Cooperation Framework for the island nation for the next five years.

CBSL withdraws service export proceeds mandatory requirement

The Central Bank of Sri Lanka (CBSL) today withdrew the mandatory requirement to convert service export receipts/proceeds, that are received in Sri Lanka on or after 12 August 2022.

SL will celebrate WTD 2022 focusing on community centric tourism

Sri Lanka will celebrate World Tourism Day (WTD) this year by focusing on ’’Rural and Community Centric Tourism’.

SLTDA kicks off training to achieve sustainable tourism development

Sri Lanka Tourism kicked off today the Sustainable Destination Development and Management Training for Provincial Officers for the National Sustainable Tourism Certification (NSTC).

Intl. tourism witnesses strong rebound in first five months of 2022

International tourism saw a strong rebound in the first five months of 2022, with almost 250 million arrivals recorded, the update from the UNWTO World Tourism Barometer revealed.

BOI launches ’Partnership Finder’ platform to lure investments

The Board of Investment (BOI), the apex organization driving investments into the country, introduced a new strategic initiative under the banner ’Partnership Finder’ to lure investment from existing investors in the country and facilitate business partnerships with foreign and Sri Lankan companies/investors.

B’desh reaches out to IMF for 4.5 bn bailout

Bangladesh became the latest South Asian nation to reach out to the International Monetary Fund (IMF) for assistace as its foreign exchange reserves continue to fall.

SL expresses interest in collaborating with the Philippines ICT sector

Sri Lanka recently expressed interest in collaborating with the ICT sector of the Philippines, to pave the way for both nations to complement each other’s strengths and capabilities particularly in the areas of e-government, e-commerce, business process outsourcing, and software development.

Cost of air travel expected to further increase in coming months: IATA

The cost of air travel is expected to further increase in the coming months as the rising fuel prices will be passsed on to passengers, said International Air Transport Association (IATA).

CB tightens monetary policy by 100bps

The Central Bank this morning announced the tightening of the monetary policy by 100 basis points to contain rising inflation and the possible build-up of any inflation expectations.

Dhammika calls on Ranil to resign as Fin Min

Investment Promotion Minister Dhammika Perera today called on Prime Minister Ranil Wickremesinge to step down as the Finance Minister as no clear plan has been conceptualised to steer the country away from the ongoing economic crisis.

Disney likely to lose exclusive rights to Mickey Mouse

Entertainment giant Disney is likely to lose exclusive rights to its iconic and most beloved cartoon character ‘Mickey Mouse’ in 2024.

UK re-issues travel advisory against SL

The United Kingdom has re-issued a travel advisory against visiting Sri Lanka, not even a month after the previous warning was removed.

Operations of Perpetual Treasuries suspended for another six months

The Monetary Board of the Central Bank of Sri Lanka (CBSL) announced today its decision to extend the suspension of Perpetual Treasuries Limited (PTL) from carrying on the business and activities of a Primary Dealer.

SriLankan Airlines, Kuwait Airways launch codeshare partnership

National carrier SriLankan Airlines, and Kuwait Airways has launched a new codeshare partnership that came into effect on 20 June 2022.

Two finance companies fined Rs.1.5mn for violating FTRA

Two finance companies have been slapped with administrative penalties amounting to Rs.1.5 million during the final quarter of 2021 for the violation of the provisions of Financial Transactions Reporting Act, No. 6 of 2006 (FTRA).

Five failed finance companies not viable: CBSL

The CBSL announced today that actions will be taken to liquidate the five failed finance companies in accordance with applicable legal provisions.

Discussions held to settle outstanding fuel payments

Discussions were held by President Gotabaya Rajapaksa today with the CBSL and other key stakeholders to settle the outstanding payments that are due to relevant companies for fuel supply.

Steve Hanke measures SL’ inflation at 130.14%/year

Economist Steve Hanke shared today that according to his accurate measure, Sri Lanka’s inflation stands at 130.14 percent.

Central and Southern Asia falls back in achieving gender equality

Overall, Central and Southern Asia as a region is not on track to achieve gender equality by 2030, the latest assessment by UN Women revealed. Across the region, out of 18 indicators for the SDGs, only one has met the target.

US extends fresh funding of US$ 5.75 mil

The U.S. government announced a third tranche of new funding today to address the immediate needs of people hardest hit by the economic crisis in Sri Lanka.

Australia’s Commonwealth Bank announces ‘Support for SL’

The Commonwealth Bank of Australia has kicked off a support initiative for Sri Lanka to encourage those in that country to transfer money to the crisis hot economy.

Australia pledges support to overcome economic crisis

Australia pledges support to overcome economic crisis

SL embassy in Brazil steps up to promote tourism

The Embassy of Sri Lanka in Brazil in collaboration with the Brazilian Association for Travel Agencies (ABAV- DF), stepped up to promote Sri Lanka as a destination for Brazilian and South American tourists.

SL among nations with slowest roads in the world: IMF

Sri Lanka is among the nations in the world that has the slowest roads, which indicates the economy is facing obstacles in its development effort, an IMF analysis revealed.

National Policy for Tourism final draft unveiled

The final draft of the National Policy for Tourism (NPT) was presented to the sector stakeholders for their input before moving the strategy set towards the implementation phase.

Global air cargo market continues to contract

As economic challenges continue to rise for countries across the world even as many have braved through the challenges stemming from the pandemic, air cargo demand dropped by 11.2 percent year-on-year (YoY) in April, while cargo load factors dipped by 5.2 percent 51.6 percent and capacity by 2 percent.

UN calls for over US$47 million for life-saving assistance

The United Nations team in Sri Lanka and non-governmental organisations launched a joint Humanitarian Needs and Priorities (HNP) Plan today.

Hope interim budget will lay foundation for recovery, stabilisation: Ranil

Prime Minister Ranil Wickremesinghe said he will present the interim budget to the parliament on the basis of the future economic plan and road map drawn up for the country.