SEC intervenes in independent directors’ issue for the first time
The Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) for the first time under corporate governance regulations has intervened in the appointment of independent directors to a company. On Wednesday, the SEC directed Watawala Plantations PLC to appoint new independent non-executive directors to the board as three of their present independent directors do not fulfill the criteria of [...]
Sri Lanka’s vehicle imports slow down
Sri Lanka’s vehicle registrations have slowed down in the past eight months due to high taxes imposed on vehicle imports, said Commissioner General of Motor Traffic S. H. Harischandra. In the first eight months of 2012 registration of brand new and reconditioned cars declined 34.6 per cent to 25,489 units from 38,974 compared to the [...]
Bull-run amidst concerns of credit bubble and manipulation
The Colombo bourse in just four weeks has returned to being among the best performing markets in the world from a worst performer but concerns are being raised over alleged manipulation of junk stocks and an impending credit bubble, analysts say. The AllShare Index (ASI) has risen sharply by 22 per cent or 800 points [...]
Louis Vitton tourist resort in upmarket Maldives
Sri Lanka may be going the wrong way in still tapping the mass market in a region crowded with this type of tourism, and should take lessons from the Maldives which is attracting smaller villas, designer brands and high-end properties. Opening in 2013 with 46 villas in Randheli island is designer brand Louis Vitton’s only [...]
COPE resumes stock market probe on Tuesday
Officials of the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC), the Colombo Stock Exchange (CSE) and the Central Bank have been summoned before the Parliamentary Committee on Public Enterprises (COPE) on Tuesday in an ongoing probe of the country’s troubled capital markets. Of particular interest is a confidential document submitted by the SEC nearly a month ago [...]
Boom or bust at the CSE
Sound fundamentals, a runaway market or positive developments through the appointment of a ‘market-friendly’ regulator are the questions surfacing in the Colombo stock market these days. Another sticky issue is labelling of media as pro-market or anti-market. The media is meant to report events as and when they unfold and analyse developments in an objective [...]
Disruption awaits the education bubble
This year is shaping up better than anticipated. It’s only September and I have annoyed twice as many groups of people as I did all of last year. That’s a good start. My job as I told an audience of Private Equity managers recently in a keynote address is to worry about thinking. To worry [...]
Industry claims comedy of errors at Sri Lanka Tourism Awards
After noticing that your headline in the article last week under the above headline was somewhat one-sided where the selection of the vast majority of the winners was not challenged even informally, we thought it is appropriate to present our version to the readers to be fair by those who worked tirelessly and sometime round [...]
SLID provides lessons on ‘Governance’ to Trincomalee business
The Sri Lanka Institute of Directors (SLID), continuing with its initiative to take the message of governance to the provinces, conducted a seminar titled “Conducting Business Responsibly” in Colombo over the weekend (Sept. 15-16), held at the Chaaya Blu Hotel Trincomalee. It was conducted in collaboration with the Trincomalee District Chamber of Commerce, a SLID [...]
South Africa using Sri Lanka as a springboard for trade with India
A South African trade delegation visiting the country last week said that they are interested in using Sri Lanka as a springboard to forge increased trade ties with India, officials said. “They are interested in establishing trade ties with Sri Lanka and will use Sri Lanka as a springboard to India to further their trade [...]
Ranches and property development business from South Africa
South African (SA) businesses are considering an investment of US$122 million in Sri Lanka to be pledged by a business delegation due in Colombo next year, on the heels of a mission that was here last week. “I am pleased to announce that SAPOA, South African Property Owners’ Association, the biggest South African property owner [...]
SLAAQP members visit Kelani Cables
The Sri Lanka Association for the Advancement of Quality and Productivity (SLAAQP), which is in the forefront of promoting the adoption of good techniques and practices for improving productivity and quality, has embarked on a new programme to visit factories with good practices. The first programme was an observation tour of the factory of Kelani [...]
Mobitel’s ‘MBus’ – Master of Business course via mLearning
Sri Lanka Telecom Mobitel recently tied up with the Department of Accountancy of the Kelaniya University to introduce ‘MBus’ – the Master of Business curriculum via its mLearning platform. Through this, students have the ability to access faculty on the Internet via a Mobitel Dongle – making the mLearning ‘MBus’ programme a unique mode of [...]
Luxury cruises generate new prospects for CeySail Cruises
Cruises on the Indian Ocean have generated increased business opportunities with CeySail Cruises offering luxury yacht excursions from Trincomalee and Galle. The company said in a media statement that they were in possession of a luxury catamaran and monohull yacht with services for a day and multi day excursions at Trincomalee till the end of [...]
Corporates come together to fight HIV AIDS in the workplace
Private sector corporate entities have ventured into taking action against another health crisis area to mitigate and prevent the spread of the deadly HIV AIDS in the country. This is through awareness and vital information through a website – ‘Passing Awareness on HIV AIDS is just a click away’; the information which could not be [...]
SriLankan Airlines wins KLIA Award for 6th time
SriLankan Airlines recently received the title of ‘Best Airline Operator from South Asia’ for the sixth time, at the annual Kuala Lumpur International Awards 2011 which recognize the best airlines operating to Malaysia. SriLankan’s Head of Service Delivery Chanaka Olagama said: “SriLankan has won this award in six of the seven years that it has [...]
Access actively involved in building Mattala International Airport
Access Engineering PLC, is helping China Harbour Engineering Company Ltd to build one of the country’s top infrastructure projects, the new international airport at Mattala, Hambantota. “Access Engineering has been entrusted with the construction of the Cargo and Fire Rescue building, design and construction of the airport access road, laying of pipes, construction of a [...]
Bio-mass products firm saves SL Rs 2 bln in forex annually
Professional Met Consultancy Services (Pvt) Ltd has been awarded the Sri Lanka National best Energy Services Company award for the second consecutive year at the recent Sri Lanka National Energy Efficiency awards held in Colombo. The company is actively engaged in the supply, installation and commissioning of bio-mass projects utilizing indigenous fuels (firewood, saw dust, [...]
Insurance claims on the rise owing to growing traffic in Colombo
Insurance claims in Colombo are on the rise owing to heavy traffic in the city, an insurance specialist says. “The severity of these incidents are low, but their frequency is high in the Colombo area due to the congestion,” Deepthi Lokuarachchi, Orient Insurance Sri Lanka CEO told the Business Times. He said that this isn’t [...]
Sri Lanka’s first fashion portal launched
WELOVEIT Studio, a strategic design studio in Sri Lanka, has launched what it calls Sri Lanka’s first-ever online designer portal – The Fashion Circle. The launch was at “The Fashion Circle Runway Show” held recently at Mt. Lavinia Hotel organized by the studio. The portal, a world’s first concept, brings together all fashion professionals – [...]
Apple needs more than iPhone 5: Analysts
TOKYO, (AFP) -Asian mobile carriers look set to cash in on the iPhone 5 and its superfast speeds, but the model is not the game-changer that Apple needs if it is to remain top of the heap, analysts said Thursday. The phone’s use of Long-Term Evolution (LTE) wireless technology will allow carriers to increase their [...]
SriLankan Airlines Group wins big at National Energy Efficiency Awards
The SriLankan Airlines Group won several awards in the ‘State Sector Buildings – Large Scale’ category at the Vidulka National Energy Efficiency Awards 2012. The national carrier won the only Silver Award in the category, while its subsidiary SriLankan Catering Ltd. was awarded the sole Bronze Award. There were no Gold awards presented in this [...]
15 local and foreign university students intern at 3 companies
John Keells Holdings PLC (JKH), Ceylon Tobacco Company (CTC) and HSBC came together for “Fast Track 15″ Internship Programme for the second year, providing an opportunity to 15 locals studying in local and foreign universities to be engaged in a six-week internship programme during their summer break. The internship programme is packed with opportunities and [...]
Islamic Finance shows growing interest, taking root in Sri Lanka
In an indication that Islamic finance is taking root in Sri Lanka, the Islamic Finance News (IFN) roadshow took place in Colombo last week and in that the Islamic Finance industry and key stakeholders in the country assembled together to examine the issues and the future. There were panel discussions on Islamic Finance in Sri [...]
Revolutionizing Sri Lanka’s agricultural Rupee
The global escalation of commodity prices in the latter part of last decade impacted Sri Lanka’s rice market with retail prices showing sharp increases for the consumer. The regulatory forces with ceiling on consumer prices and guaranteed price for paddy did alleviate this problem to some extent. Today it has taken a different turn due [...]
Young Leaders of South Asia to network at Colombo meeting next week
The Eisenhower Fellowships South Asia Conference titled “South Asia on the move: achieving its full potential in the 21st century” is due to be held on 27-29 September in Colombo. Organisers said the orientation will begin with Dr. Mark Carnesi of Eisenhower Fellowships-Philadelphia, making some opening remarks followed by the 22 new South Asian Eisenhower [...]
Sri Lanka’s urban development plan aimed at attracting more foreign investors:Gotabaya
Sri Lanka’s urban development plan is aimed at attracting more foreign investors to the country, said Secretary Defence and Urban Development Gotabaya Rajapaksa when he addressed a ceremony which followed the laying of the foundation stone to build a new multi storied car park at the Central Bank premises in Colombo on Wednesday. He noted [...]
Commercial Bank and Central Bank to develop entrepreneurship skills of SMEs
Commercial Bank of Ceylon has launched a programme in collaboration with the Central Bank of Sri Lanka to enhance entrepreneurship skills in the Small and Medium Scale Enterprise (SME) sector. The first seminar of this programme was held recently for entrepreneurs who are in the SME and Micro Enterprise sectors in Nuwara Eliya, the bank [...]
Laxapana scales down battery manufacturing; diversifies into other products
Laxapana Batteries PLC is scaling down its “D” size battery operation (torch batteries) and eyeing diversifying into other areas, officials said. “The market was coming down for these batteries during the last eight years. During the last three years we saw a sharp decline and now it’s not commercially viable,” an official told the Business [...]
MasterCard promotes Sri Lanka tourism with India
MasterCard International on Friday entered into a joint agreement with Sri Lanka Tourism to promote the country in India as part of a 5-year long destination promotion partnership. MasterCard stated that this was the first time a programme of this nature with a gamut of events and promotions was carried with any destination. MasterCard Worldwide [...]
Govt. seeks ways to lessen fertiliser subsidy burden
The Treasury is looking at alternate ways to reduce its financial burden vis-à-vis the fertiliser subsidy in which some Rs.50 to 60 billion is paid annually to fertilizer importing companies, Finance Ministry sources said. Due to a financial crisis, subsidy payments have got delayed and led to these companies facing severe cash-flow and liquidity problems. [...]
Improved taxi service for tourists
At least 600 taxi drivers in the Western province now have an improved image as they are uniformed, courteous and equipped with first aid skills to better serve visitors to the island, an industry official said. In an interview with the Business Times, Western Province Tourist Board Chairman Claude Thomasz said they have trained nearly [...]
