Economy grows 6% in 1Q

Sri Lanka's economy grew 6 percent in the first quarter of 2013 vis-à-vis 6.3 percent growth the country recorded in the previous three months, the 2013 first quarter GDP data released by Census and Statistics Department short while ago showed.

May tourists arrivals up 21.8%

Tourist arrivals to Sri Lanka in the month of May rose 21.8 percent to 70, 026 compared with the same period of the previous year, the data released yesterday by the Sri Lanka Tourism showed

Exchange relaxation to boost apartment sales

Leading property developers welcomed last week’s exchange controls relaxations by the Central Bank, which permitted the repatriation of capital and capital gains from the sale of residential properties by non- residents.

Rupee movement no cause for concern: CB Governor

The fall in Sri Lanka’s rupee currency is no cause for concern as foreign investors have been changing their positions rather than pulling out of the island nation’s bond market, Central Bank Governor Ajith Nivard Cabraal said.

SME lending: Private sector banks account for lion’s share

Sri Lanka’s private commercial banks have significantly surpassed state-owned banks in funding Small and Medium Enterprises (SMEs) in 2012, a stark contrast to the situation in 2011, the latest annual report of the Ministry of Finance and Planning showed.

Sri Lanka among top investment - conducive countries: Basil

Sri Lanka has become one of the best countries for Investment since it can now boasts of a peaceful environment and a strong political stabilization after the cessation of hostilities which prevailed for over 30 years, a top cabinet minister said.

CB may take further measures to lower lending rates

The Central Bank could take more steps to reduce high lending rates if commercial banks do not fall in line with monetary policy rate cuts, a top Central Bank official said yesterday..

Central Bank further relaxes foreign exchange regulations

During the past few years, Sri Lanka’s macroeconomic fundamentals have improved and the domestic financial sector has become stronger and more resilient

T-bill yields steady

The short term Treasury bill yields fell at yesterday's auction held to re-issue Rs.12 billion maturing bills, the Public Debt Department of the Central Bank said.

Expropriated enterprises offered to listed firms, leading private businesses

Several publicly listed firms and leading business houses in the country have been offered some of the enterprises that were vested with the government under the Revival of Underperforming Enterprises or Underutilized Assets Act in 2011.

SL’s foreign financing undergoes major shift

The composition of Sri Lanka’s foreign financing has undergone a major shift from concessional to non-concessional loans in 2012 with the country’s graduation to a middle income country, the latest Finance Ministry annul report showed.

Central Bank urges banks to cut lending rates

Sri Lanka’s Central Bank is to issue guidelines to direct banks to cut lending rates and narrow the gap with the inflation rate, central bank Governor Ajith Nivard Cabraal said.

Nature tourism could be made top forex earner: SLNG

The country’s top authority entrusted to promote and develop tourism, the Sri Lanka Tourism Development Authority (SLTDA) should devise a meaningful strategic plan to promote the country’s biodiversity without merely focusing on mega projects, an environment conservationist notes.

Higher power tariffs push May inflation to 7.3%

Though the recent electricity tariff hike impact on the country’s overall inflation was taken too lightly by the government, it appears to have played a major role in pushing up the Colombo Consumer Price Index (CCPI) by 7.3 percent in May from 6.4 percent in April on a Year-on-Year (YoY) basis.

Sri Lanka aims to reduce foreign and short-term debts

Sri Lanka aims to cut its foreign currency debts and short-term domestic borrowing under a medium-term debt management plan, the central bank said on Friday, after it failed to achieve its debt-to-GDP target last year.

Sri Lanka to reduce investment threshold to attract more FDIs

The Economic Development Ministry is in discussion with the Board of Investment (BoI) to reduce the minimum initial investment threshold for BoI ventures expecting to set up operations in Sri Lanka, in a bid to attract small and medium scale foreign direct investments (FDIs) to the investment hungry nation.

CB to issue Rs.2bn, 30-year bond

The Central Bank (CB) will issue a Rs.2 billion Treasury bond with a 30-year tenure at an auction today. The bond will carry a 9.0 percent coupon with a maturity date of June 01, 2043.

April tourist arrivals up 14.7%

Tourist arrivals to Sri Lanka increased by 14.7 percent year-on-year (YoY) to 79,829 during the month of April.

Sri Lanka on track to achieve MDGs: ADB

With 2 years to go for the 2015 Millennium Development Goal (MDG) deadline, Sri Lanka appears to have made notable progress in many fronts, particularly in areas of achieving universal primary education enrollment and water supply & basic sanitation (WSS), Asian Development Bank (ADB) showed.

Local construction industry calls to trim foreign presence

Sri Lanka’s construction sector professionals recently called to cut down the number of foreign consultants, contractors and labourers employed in mega infrastructure projects taking place in the country, stressing the practice has proved detrimental to the local construction industry.

SL'S public investments, FDIs lagging behind peers

Despite government investments in the economy increasing as a percentage of GDP as well as in absolute terms during 2012, the International Monetary Fund (IMF) points out that Sri Lanka’s public investment is low compared to countries that have experienced sustained high growth.

Economic growth leaves behind Lankan poor

Despite generally stronger economic growth achieved by Sri Lanka during the recent past, the International Monetary Fund (IMF) claims that the growth has failed to reduce poverty at a similar pace, particularly in less - developed provinces.

StanChart sees no room for further monetary easing

Issuing an Economic Alert, Standard Chartered said that they did not see space for further easing in monetary policy, given the inflation risks remaining high. The bank thus expects the current rates to remain stable at least until 1Q’ 2014.

Tough times dampen Colombo Dockyard 1Q profits by 55%

Amid ship owners shifting survival mode, smaller ship yards filing for bankruptcy and the damp general global economic outlook, Colombo Dockyard PLC, a Sri Lankan listed ship building and repair firm saw its net profit plunging as much as 55 percent to Rs.337.4 million in 1Q’13 over the same quarter last year.

Iraq demands quality Ceylon Tea

Iraq, a leading buyer of Sri Lankan tea has urged authorities to strengthen the process with regard to the packaging, certification and shipping of teas to avoid adulterated tea reaching Iraq.

T-bill yields plunge after rate cut

Treasury bill yields plunged in the first bill auction after a 50 basis point policy rate cut by the Central Bank last week, the data released by the Public Debt Department of the central Bank showed.

Gratuity woes for RPCs

The annual gratuity provision of Regional Plantation Companies (RPCs) will increase by an average of between Rs.175-225 million per company as a result of recent wage hike, according to the Planters Association of Sri Lanka.

IMF focus on SL's reserve position

Despite numerous attempts by the Central Bank to justify the country’s current gross external reserve position that now stands at US $ 6.9 billion or equivalent to 4.5 months of imports, the International Monetary Fund (IMF) considers this to be relatively low by most criteria and has urged the authorities to strengthen the reserve position.

CB seen keeping rates steady tomorrow

Sri Lanka's Central Bank is expected to keep key monetary policy rates steady for the fifth straight month on Friday, a Reuters poll showed, and analysts predict at least a quarter percentage point cut in June as both the central bank and the country's treasury secretary have signaled

Export drop moderates; March trade gap narrows 29%

Sri Lanka’s March export income drop moderated 2.8 percent year-on-year (YoY) to US $ 837 million, resulting the trade gap to narrow 29 percent YoY to US $ 704.5 million, the data released by the Central Bank showed.