Despite various negative projections by multilateral agencies and even by the country’s Central Bank, Sri Lanka would record positive economic growth in the final quarter of this year, Finance State Minister Ranjith Siyambalapiriya said.

The final decision on the privatisation of Sri Lanka Telecom PLC (SLT) will be taken during an upcoming meeting of Cabinet of Ministers, the President’s Media.....

The Sectoral Oversight Committee on National Security has opposed the government’s proposal to privatise Sri Lanka Telecom PLC (SLT), as such a move could be detrimental to national security.

Sri Lanka’s tea exporters yesterday expressed “deep concerns” over the government’s decision to abolish the Simplified Value-Added Tax (SVAT) system as they fear the move will create cash flow difficulties for them among several other issues.

As Sri Lanka is looking to support the poor and vulnerable population, which has significantly expanded since the pandemic and economic crisis, Colombo-based policy think tank LIRNEasia urged the government to reopen the registration of the new welfa

The government is planning to boost tax revenue by 1.2 percent of gross domestic product (GDP) by removing most of the Value-Added Tax (VAT) exemptions and abolishing the Simplified Value Added Tax (SVAT) methodology.

Sri Lanka’s apparel sector would face a major setback if it fails to renew the GSP Plus tariff concession from the European Union (EU), the Joint Apparel Association Forum (JAAF) cautioned, as the collective loss for the industry would amount to ab

The months-long contraction in credit to the private sector somewhat moderated in April in a sign of bottoming out ahead of further easing in the interest rates in the months to come with the beginning of a monetary easing cycle set off last week.

Sri Lanka’s economy is showing tentative signs of improvement, due to the implementation of critical policy actions, acknowledged visiting senior International Monetary Fund (IMF) official but noted recovery remains challenging.

The Central Bank yesterday delivered a surprise policy rate cut, bringing nearly two years long tightening cycle to a close and left open the door for further rate cuts in the next few months among other measures to ease remaining restrictions on imp

In a bid to support the country’s small and medium-sized enterprises’ (SMEs) access to commercial loans, the government is moving towards operationalising the Asian Development Bank (ADB)-backed National Credit Guarantee Institution (NCGI) initia

The government is likely to raise the domestic debt ceiling for this year in the coming months in order to raise the required funds via selling government securities to rehabilitate and maintain the country’s critical road infrastructure that is in

The Asian Development Bank (ADB) yesterday approved a US $ 350 million special policy-based loan to provide budget support to Sri Lanka for economic stabilisation. “The programme is part....

Sri Lanka’s Board of Investment (BOI) has increased the foreign direct investment (FDI) target to US$ 2 billion from earlier US$ 1.3 billion for the year as foreign investors are returning to the country following a troubled year and given the poss

Sri Lanka’s merchandise exports plunged 16.5 percent year-on-year (YoY) to US $ 814.1 million in April, bringing the cumulative export earnings for the first four months of 2023 to US $ 3.81 billion, an decrease of 9.78 percent YoY, data from the E

Sri Lanka needs to step up efforts in enticing a larger proportion of its population across all provinces towards embracing entrepreneurship so that the impacts of the ongoing economic crisis would lessen, the Central Bank asserted.

Sri Lanka has failed to fulfil two of the International Monetary Fund (IMF) programme commitments that were due in April 2023, publicfinance.lk, a platform for public finance-related information in Sri Lanka run by Colombo-based think tank Verité Re

Sri Lanka’s hotel sector is unable to fully reap the benefit of the increasing tourist arrivals as industry players have opted to slash rates in a bid to capture market share. The Hotels Association....

Given the precarious state of the public finances, a former central banker warned that the proposed domestic debt optimisation (DDO) is unlikely to be implemented on voluntary terms, despite the assurances given by the Central Bank and Treasury.

The months-long descent in credit to the private sector turned more pronounced in March as such credit reported a net de-growth of Rs.107.6 billion, nearly doubling from the Rs.57.6 billion contraction...

The government is mulling strict measures to rectify the prices of imported goods, if the traders fail to pass down the benefits of the recent appreciation of the rupee against the US dollar to the consumer.

Sri Lanka’s rupee further appreciated against the US dollar (US$) yesterday dropping below Rs.300 for the first time since April last year as the Central Bank (CB) took a breather from its dollar purchases to allow consumption to rebound.

National carrier SriLankan Airlines is expecting to wrap up its re-fleeting exercise, which got the Cabinet approval last year, in the next two to three months, acquiring at least seven aircraft in the first phase, a top official said.

Despite the sharp upward revisions in electricity tariffs, the financial performance of the Ceylon Electricity Board (CEB) remains dismal....

The International Monetary Fund (IMF) expects Sri Lanka to complete the debt restructuring process by the first review of the country’s US $ 3 billion programme, which is scheduled for September-October.

With the number of active Board of Investment (BOI)-approved companies falling by nearly 50 percent since the inception of the agency,,,,

Cash-strapped Sri Lanka’s national airline announced a staggering US $ 525 million annual loss yesterday

President instructs officials to amend provisions of land management ordinances and introduce new regulations Stresses that archaic land policies established during the colonial era are no longer suited to modern development needs

Sri Lanka’s lubricant consumption fell to a 13-year low in 2022, amid the severe forex crunch, which snowballed into a full-blown economic crisis, marked by hours-long power cuts, massive fuel shortages and runaway inflation.

The first week of May recorded the lowest weekly tourist arrivals since January 2023 with only 18,401 international visitors having entered destination Sri Lanka.