“Progressive” tax on vehicles and luxury goods in 2016 Budget
Sri Lanka plans to unveil a “progressive” tax on vehicles, luxury and semi luxury goods, and imported food items in a bid to increase revenue and bridge the 2016 budget deficit. The new tax rate on these luxury goods and vehicles is yet to be finalised, official sources said adding that it is likely to [...]
Colombo Port unions rock the boat at SLPA
In the wake of allegations of inaction and a slide in performance at the Sri Lanka Ports Authority (SLPA), 17 of the 21 trade unions have teamed up to assist the new authorities.A section of the trade unions from the Sri Lanka Ports Authority (SLPA) urged authorities on Thursday to bring back a former shipping [...]
George Soros to visit Sri Lanka, PM says
World famous investor George Soros will be a key participant at an economic summit to be held in Sri Lanka before January 2016, Prime Minister Ranil Wickremesinghe told Parliament on Thursday. In a lengthy economy policy statement, the Prime Minister said that while the first budget of this Government to be presented on November 20th [...]
Politicians, economist at STBC-pre-budget discussion
Deputy Minister Eran Wickramaratne, former Deputy Governor (Central Bank) W.A. Wijewardene and JVP Parliamentarian Sunil Handunneththi will take part in the Sunday Times Business Club’s (STBC) pre-budget panel discussion tomorrow, November 9 at the Cinnamon Lakeside hotel, Colombo. The budget is being presented on November 20 in parliament by Finance Minister Ravi Karunanayake.
100 % leasing facility for motor vehicles available till Dec 1
Did the Central Bank bungle or was it a bona fide error? Confusion reigned earlier this week over a direction given by the Central Bank (CB) on maximum loan facility available for leasing vehicles. A CB issued a directive on September 14 titled “Finance Leasing Act Direction No 01 of 2015” to specialised leasing companies [...]
Railway Projects: Way forward for Yahapalanaya averting derailment
The main allegation levelled against the previous Government at the last Presidential election was mismanagement of public funds, particularly in mega projects in the infrastructure development sectors including ports, airports, highways and railways. The accusation was that those projects were implemented through foreign bilateral loans where there was no room for competitive bidding and for [...]
Government mulls alternatives for five Colombo mega projects
The government is reviewing five major projects in the City of Colombo coming under the Urban Development Authority (UDA) to ascertain its feasibility as they are ‘white elephants’ and running at a loss, a senior cabinet minister said.The UDA currently maintains completed projects of the former Rajapaksa regime for the beautification of Colombo including the [...]
Visioning Sri Lanka in the year 2023
A strong middle class that would help drive growth in the rural economy, world class exports effectively competing in global markets, rising rural incomes and products, accountable pension schemes, more money in the hands of the people, cost of production of goods and services in line with world market trends, the law being equal to [...]
Western Region Megapolis Plan to be unveiled in Jan 2016
The new government’s flagship Western Region Megapolis Plan (WRMPP) is to be unveiled in January next year following Cabinet approval. It will be presented to local and foreign investors in January to attract investment for the development projects in the Western Region as it contributes about 45 per cent of the Gross Domestic Product (GDP) [...]
New product to tackle mosquitoes
Godreij launched a new Good Knight Fast Card known as the Magic Paper to dispel mosquitoes in double quick time. This happens as soon as it is being lit and burns for a few minutes without the use of electricity, providing safety from mosquito attacks in most households for nearly four hours. The new mosquito [...]
Haycarb records Rs. 5.5 bln turnover, pre-tax profit of Rs. 417 mln for last 1stH
Sri Lankan multinational Haycarb PLC reported a revenue growth of 6 per cent to Rs. 5.5 billion and profit before tax of Rs. 417 million for six months ending 30th September 2015. Post-tax profit stood at Rs. 351 million. In a media release, Haycarb PLC Managing Director, Mr. Rajitha Kariyawasan said, “Even though the raw [...]
Sri Lankans using public transport has dropped to 50 % now from 75 %, 20 years ago
The number of Sri Lankans using public transportation has fallen to 50 per cent now from 75 per cent, 20 years ago, one of reasons why roads in Colombo and the suburbs has become congested with private vehicles. Prof. Amal Kumarage from the University of Moratuwa’s Department of Transport and Logistics Management, said a good [...]
Cycling for a living at 68 years
Jaffna – More than a century ago, cycle rickshaws were the main mode of transport in parts of Asia. The earlier Jaffna Urban Council (now Municipal Council) taxed cycle rickshaws at 75 cents a month. While this mode of transport is no more (except as a tourist attraction), one elderly man in Jaffna is using [...]
IMF: Saudi Arabia could be broke in 5 years
(Newsmax.com) -The International Monetary Fund predicts Saudi Arabia could be broke and have a fiscal deficit of 21.6 per cent of its gross national product in five years. In a gloomy regional outlook report, the IMF said the region is suffering from long-running regional conflicts, such as violent unrest in Iraq, Syria, Libya and Yemen, [...]
Leisure sector profits ease at JKH but group results looking positive
Pre-tax profits in the leisure sector of John Keells Holdings (JKH) fell in the second quarter of 2015/2016 easing by 23 per cent to Rs.885 million from the previous year’s quarter due to many reasons.The group, in releasing its quarterly results this week, said the drop was mainly on account of the partial closure of [...]
Ceylon Chamber condemns “police brutality against HNDA students”
Sri Lanka’s powerful business grouping, the Ceylon Chamber of Commerce (CCC) has lent its support to the chorus of protests over the recent attack on demonstrating students in Colombo by the police that has evoked outrage across the country. The chamber said it wished to express its deep concern over the brutality of the police [...]
Creating the WOW factor in insurance through informed choice and treating customers fairly
It is more about “customer experience” than the product or the organization’s size. A company which has a very high focus on customer satisfaction will continue to deliver increasing profits and market share, and continue to maintain sustainable growth. The service to customers must be exceptional from inception till termination of the relationship, and thus [...]
UBER’s mobile app technology brings about cashless taxi rides in Sri Lanka
World renowned taxi app giant, UBER has entered the Sri Lankan market to revolutionise taxi rides with a cashless payment method technology. The days of calling a cab and waiting for hours for it to arrive or stopping a tuk-tuk along the roadside without realising whether there are people in it or not and then [...]
Some policies in agriculture are ruining the sector
Certain policies adopted towards agricultural development in the country by Sri Lankan authorities in fact could be seen as negative towards the very development of this sector.Agriculture Minister Duminda Dissanayake was the first minister invited by the National Chamber of Commerce of Sri Lanka (NCCSL) in their “Meet the Minister” Programme at the chamber auditorium [...]
Bitcoins, a currency used by Cyber criminals
Bitcoin, a digital currency or a form of cryptocurrency, is an example of the disconnect between online practice and legislation. Bitcoin is unregulated and there is no national regulatory body accountable for its protection in several countries. Bitcoin is a decentralised and Peer-to-Peer (P2P) network-based virtual currency that is traded online and exchanged into US [...]
Aeronautical Education and Research at the University of Moratuwa
Aeronautical engineering is associated with creation and maintenance of aircraft which travels inside the earth’s atmosphere whereas aerospace engineering deals with creation and maintenance of aircraft or spacecraft, which can travel either inside earth’s atmosphere or outside the atmosphere of the earth. Although the term Aeronautical Engineering is new to Sri Lankan society, it is [...]
WSO2 CEO unveils new and upcoming products at WSO2’s US fair
Mountain View, CA – November 3 – In an increasingly connected world, enterprises are extending new business models, processes and services across their employees, customers and partners. In his opening keynote presentation at WSO2Con US 2015 on Tuesday, Dr. Sanjiva Weerawarana, WSO2 founder, CEO and chief architect, discussed evolving IT architectural requirements driven by the [...]
Transitioning from MDGs to Sustainable Development Goals: Role of ICT
The eHealth Asia 2015 conference that concluded on October 14 in Colombo, was a resounding success (please visit http://www.ehealthasia.org to access the conference contents). Those of us who have been in the field of Health Informatics in Sri Lanka since the mid-1990s saw a remarkable change at this year’s conference. The change came in the [...]
China biggest investor in Sri Lankan real estate
China, India and Hong Kong are the top three countries currently investing in the Sri Lankan real estate market, according to new research from online real estate platform, Lamudi Sri Lanka.In a media release, Lamudi Sri Lanka ranked the leading countries investing in Sri Lanka based on foreign direct investment (FDI), number of upcoming projects [...]
Insurance industry consolidation looming
Some nine insurance firms have split into two – life and general – in a process which will see them undergo a comparable consolidation to that of the finance sector in the midterm, industry officials say. Already AIA Insurance has sold its general business (motor insurance, etc) to Janashakthi Insurance. Analysts say that large insurers [...]
Professional Bankers association confers this year’s “Outstanding Contributions to the Banking Industry’ Award on A. Sarath de Silva
The Association of Professional Bankers – Sri Lanka (APB) conferred this year’s “Outstanding Contributions to the Banking Industry’ Award to A. Sarath de Silva, the former General Manager/CEO of the Bank of Ceylon, at their 27th Anniversary Convention held recently at the Cinnamon Grand, Colombo. Each year, the APB considers making an award at its [...]
International Insurance Congress organised by the SLII
The 15th International Insurance Congress 2015 was held last month in Colombo organised by the Sri Lanka Insurance Institute (SLII). The SLII is the pioneer educational body of the insurance industry and has organized this congress for the 15th consecutie time. The theme of meeting was ‘Stability and Sustainability of the insurance industry in Sri [...]
SriLankan Airlines to get new Airbus 330-300 on Nov 10
SriLankan Airlines is to receive its fifth Airbus 330-300 on November 10 while a further two aircraft are to be introduced to the Maldives sector before the end of the year.This information emerged during a meeting between Maldives new Tourism Minister Moosa Zameer and SriLankan Airlines Chairman Ajith Dias at the World Travel Market 2015 [...]
Maliban implements Sri Lanka’s First SAP S4 HANA Solution with JKH – SGIT
Maliban Biscuit Manufactories Ltd has partnered with John Keells Holdings’ (JKH) Strategic Group Information Technology (SGIT) team to implement SAPs’ latest release. SAP S4 HANA is the latest release of the SAP ERP (Enterprise Resource Planning) solution which offers an innovation cycle through simplification along with SAP Fiori User Experience (UX), to enhance end-user experience [...]
Correction
“Trillion launches Sri Lanka’s first green asset securitization issue” In the above-headlined story which appeared last week, it was erroneously stated that Trillion’s first green asset securitization issue is regulated by the Securities and Exchange Commission of Sri Lanka (SEC). The correct position is that it is Trillion Investments that is regulated by the SEC.
Sri Lanka needs to desperately revive sales to lost Pakistani market, trade says
Pakistani authorities were urged by Sri Lanka’s tea trade to resume purchases from Colombo which lost that crucial market to Kenya. These views emerged at the 22nd AGM of the Sri Lanka Pakistan Business Council of Ceylon Chamber of Commerce in Colombo this week which entailed an interactive session titled “Pakistan trade towards US$1 billion”. [...]
Finance companies suffer following the CB directive on vehicle leasing
Finance and Leasing companies have suffered a loss of 30 per cent in their vehicle leasing business in the past six weeks following the Central Bank (CB) directive to restrict the leasing facility to 70 per cent for vehicle purchases with effect from September 15, industry officials said. The CB circular has driven away the [...]
Sri Lanka elevated by IMF in data dissemination
Sri Lanka this week subscribed to the International Monetary Fund (IMF)’s Special Data Dissemination Standard (SDDS), bringing the number of subscribing jurisdictions to 66. Sri Lanka is the 15th country to graduate to the SDDS from the IMF’s General Data Dissemination System (GDDS), in which the country has participated since July 14, 2000, the agency [...]
SL listed hotels’ profits low despite rise in tourists
Public quoted hotels of some major conglomerates witnessed low profits in the past quarter, despite tourist arrivals to Sri Lanka being up by 9 per cent last month, analysts say.For the quarter ended 30 September 2015, John Keells Holdings (JKH) leisure sector saw a 23 per cent drop over the same period in the last [...]
The Budapest Cybercrime Convention and its impacts
On September 1, 2015, the Council of Europe Convention on Cybercrime (ETS 185 of 2001), often referred to as the “Budapest Cybercrime Convention”, or “Cybercrime Convention” in short, entered into force in Sri Lanka. This is a historic achievement, because Sri Lanka becomes the first country in South Asia (and only the second Asian country, [...]
“CB employs retired staff”
With reference to the Business Times report last week titled ‘CB re-employs old staffers as consultant’, in an article that I wrote for the Business Times on 15.03.2015 I highlighted the necessity of grooming career central bankers for future top posts. This important issue has been neglected for years and as a result the Central [...]
Sri Lanka needs to provide non-contributory, state funded pension schemes
While the Government is unlikely to commit to funding pension schemes, ultimately it will be forced to do so by political pressure when the numbers of those not receiving old age pensions reach significant proportions. “It is better or more prudent to strt designing a non-contributory, state- funded basic old-age pension for all above 65 [...]
Aitken Spence ‘Turyaa’ hotels poised to expand
Aitken Spence Holdings’ (Spence) latest ‘Turyaa’ brand is poised to expand after opening properties in Chennai and Kalutara with another coming soon in Ahungalla, officials said.The company’s large resort construction projects in Negombo, Kalutara and Ahungalla are expected to add around 750 rooms to the sector, they said. Turyaa Chennai, the 143-room city property in [...]
Government mulls alternatives for five Colombo mega projects
The government is reviewing five major projects in the City of Colombo coming under the Urban Development Authority (UDA) to ascertain its feasibility as they are ‘white elephants’ and running at a loss, a senior cabinet minister said.The UDA currently maintains completed projects of the former Rajapaksa regime for the beautification of Colombo including the [...]