Tea-weeds
Tea bushes amidst weeds and other wild plants in the Ratnapura district. Tea smallholders in the area have been affected by a combination of lack of weedicides like Glyphosate and prices. Pic by M.A. Pushpa Kumara
Strict regime for SL’s money brokers
Stringent rules for errant money brokers particularly fit and proper guidelines for senior staff in these companies were recently promulgated by the Central Bank (CB), all in the backdrop of the scandal over Perpetual Treasuries Ltd (PTL). Conflict of interest and illegal trades are dealt with firmly in the new rules including banning the use [...]
Gold smugglers help jewellers keep heads above water
In the wake of the imposition of a 15 per cent tax, Sri Lanka‘s gold industry now depends on smuggled gold to secure enough stocks for its production and selling at a reasonable price by keeping a very thin margin to satisfy customers, Colombo Sea Street jewellers said. Importers have to bear the costs like [...]
Govt. considers leasing East Terminal for 35 years
The Sri Lanka Ports Authority (SLPA) is expected to lease out the East Container Terminal (ECT) for a period of 35 years with a possible partner from the region. Port workers were informed by Ports and Shipping Minister Mahinda Samarasinghe during a recent meeting that the government has plans to lease out the ECT facility [...]
VAT removed on doctors’ consultations
The Government has removed the 15 per cent VAT on fees paid to medical practitioners, medical consultant fees and channelling fees with effect from July 2. A directive to this effect permitting all medical institutions and medical professionals not to pay VAT, as prescribed earlier, has been issued by the Inland Revenue Department. This came [...]
Helitours off the radar since May 2
Helitours’ flight operations have been suspended in view of issues linked to regulatory matters and since the aircraft are currently under flight servicing. Sri Lanka Air Force (SLAF) Spokesman Wing Commander Gihan Seneviratne told the Business Times that flight operations of Helitours had been suspended since May 2. He noted that the suspension was due [...]
Equality for female migrant workers
It was a windy Friday morning and I was already late for my column. Then, just as Kussi Amma Sera brought the tea, there were shouts of “Akka, Akka …” from the gate. Serapina was calling KAS, probably for their usual tete-a-tete which is normally on a Thursday morning. “Aie?” Kussi Amma Sera asked, running [...]
Village in the Jungle
I am not sure if there is any Sri Lankan who has not read or heard of the novel written by Leonard Woolf- “Village in the Jungle”. Sinhala-speaking readers know its Sinhala translation by the title with the same meaning, “Baddegama”. Leonard Woolf was a British citizen, who served as an Assistant Government Agent in [...]
Welenda.com, new marketplace for local businesses to reach international market
Welenda.com, a ground-breaking online business venture allowing Sri Lankan businesses and industries to break barriers and reach the international market, was launched in the US recently. The online retail service which opens up a new avenue for Sri Lankan businesses and industries underscores the message that Sri Lanka is ready to make its presence felt [...]
More than 10,000 social enterprises operate in Sri Lanka
As a part of a global effort, the British Council in Sri Lanka launched the report “State of Social Enterprises in Sri Lanka” at an event last week in Colombo. This is a British Council effort to build a global baseline of social enterprise research and is another report that would sit alongside similar reports [...]
Alliance Finance helps plant over 150,000 trees on World Environment Day
Alliance Finance Co (AFC) marked June 5 – World Environment Day – with a campaign across 25 districts and involving 371,000 children in a massive tree planting campaign. Through the company’s Thuru Mithuru programme AFC teams spread across the country to 991 schools to help plant 176,518 trees that would absorb 3,843 metric tonnes of [...]
Glyphosate thro’ CPC
The Ceylon Petroleum Corporation (CPC) confirming the Sunday Times report titled “Limited glyphosate for tea, rubber thro’ CPC” published on June 10, 2018 this week detailed the current situation in the importation and distribution of glyphosate in Sri Lanka. The CPC in a letter states that the Generic Glyphosate registrants must forward a detailed report [...]
“China can be a ‘big bully’, says top bureaucrat”
Reference to this story last week with the above headline, Export Development Board Chairperson Indira Malwatte has sent the following clarification: “Having an understanding of the importance of China for Sri Lanka as a bilateral trading partner and the largest FDI provider to Sri Lanka, there was no intention whatsoever to disrespect China referring to [...]
Colombo needs better, managed parking
Colombo is in need of better, managed parking as the city continues to grapple with congestion on the streets. According to the Ministry of Transport and Civil Aviation, by 2017 the vehicle population in Sri Lanka was 7,247,122 compared to 6,795,469 vehicles in 2016. Over 500,000 vehicles reportedly enter Colombo daily and there is a [...]
Global Top 100 companies reach record $20 trillion: PwC
London -The market capitalisation of the 100 largest companies globally has increased significantly by US$2,597 billion or 15 per cent compared to 31 March 2017, according to PwC’s Global Top 100 ranking, released this week. Some 48 per cent of growth in the past year has been contributed by US companies, on the back of [...]
Four trade unions object to new Decent Work programme
Four major Sri Lanka unions have complained about the recent launch of the Decent Work Country Programme 2018-2022 (DWCP) by the International Labour Organisation (ILO) saying it was shrouded in secrecy. The complaint has been made in a letter to ILO Director General Guy Rider by the Ceylon Bank Employees Union, Ceylon Mercantile Industrial and [...]
Maliyadeva Girls’ College wins SLIIT’s soft skills competition
The SLIIT Business School recently conducted the Grand Finale of Soft Skills+ 2018, its annual CSR programme that aims to uplift the soft skills of school children at the main auditorium in the SLIIT, Malabe Campus. Chief Guest of the occasion was Ruwan Edirisinghe, Chairman of RN Group of Companies. SLIIT Business School conducts this [...]
Licence to motor trade; the need of the hour
For many people, a car is more than just a way to get from point A to point B. When purchasing a car, most people buy new or used vehicles from car dealers, who act as the middleman between the car manufacturer and the end consumer. Becoming a car dealer is not a difficult task [...]
Vehicle import expenditure rises with rupee depreciation
Sri Lanka’s expenditure on imports rose recently boosted by substantial imports of vehicles, and other commodities, suggesting domestic demand maybe picking up despite the triggering of economic hardship for the people from currency depreciation and inflation. In April 2018, expenditure on imports increased to US$1,794 million from $1578.2 million registering a double-digit year-on-year growth, Central [...]
DIMO digitalises delivery and transportation of goods
Sri Lanka’s traditional landscape of the logistics and transportation industry has now been enriched by mobility through new innovation introduced by Diesel and Motor Engineering PLC (DIMO). The company recently launched “PickMyLoad”, a unique mobile application that will enable the general public to easily find a way to deliver or transport goods from one location [...]
Motor traders to prepare sustainable industry masterplan
The Ceylon Motor Traders Association (CMTA) has emphasised the need of a government policy to take the country’s motor industry to the next level of technological changes. Newly appointed CMTA Chairman Sheran Fernando told the 98th CMTA Annual General Meeting (AGM) in Colombo recently that bringing these concerns to the notice of the Government and [...]
Polaris Sri Lanka rides high on all-terrain vehicles
Polaris Industries Inc, the first off-road vehicle maker to enter the Sri Lankan market, will be establishing its footprint in the country in collaboration with IWS Leisure Pvt Ltd. The two companies signed an agreement recently with the aim of popularisng and improving sales of All Terrain Vehicles (ATV) in the next few years, Manager [...]
INSEE Ecocycle Lanka launched for industrial waste management solutions
INSEE Cement Sri Lanka celebrated the INSEE Ecocycle Lanka spin-off launch ceremony on July 2 at the Ecocycle Pre-processing Facility (PPF) in Katunayake followed by a post-launch function at INSEE Puttalam Cement Plant in the evening. In a media release, the company said it now operates as a separate legal entity and a fully owned [...]
ITC hotel and Sapphire Residences ready by 2021
The 5-star ITC One hotel and Sapphire Residences now under construction and coming up adjoining the Shangri-La Colombo at Galle Face, is due to be completed by 2021, it was officially stated on Wednesday. Making this announcement, Sri Lanka Sotheby’s International Realty said it has been appointed as global marketing agents for the ultra-prestige residential [...]
Sri Lanka moving on a private sector-led growth path
Sri Lanka’s economy is on the correct path of progress with a change from the traditional system of depending on state-run enterprises to a more vibrant, private sector-led growth model with a crucial role, in it, for Small and Medium Enterprises (SMEs). This was indicated by Mangala Samaraweera, Minister of Finance and Mass Media when [...]
Central Bank seeking another US$100 m to resurrect ETIFL
The Central Bank is looking out for another US$100 million financial infusion from a prospective investor to bail out the defunct Edirisinghe Trust Investment Finance Ltd (ETIFL), a licensed finance company, in an effort to complete the repayment of all the monies of disgruntled depositors. This sum of $100 million is needed to completely resurrect [...]
Jeevan Gnanam takes over as SLASSCOM Chairman
Newly appointed Sri Lanka Association of Software and Services Companies (SLASSCOM) Chairman, Jeevan Gnanam commenced his tenure with the announcement of an ambitious vision to rapidly grow the country’s IT industry to Rs. 5 billion by 2022. Speaking to a gathering of Sri Lanka’s most successful IT professionals in Colombo this week, Mr. Gnanam commended [...]
National policy to open skies
Sri Lanka is likely to adopt the open skies policy as part of the National Aviation Policy and the proposal is currently awaiting Cabinet approval. Open skies policy for Sri Lanka would be a managed policy as it will allow for unlimited frequencies for carriers operating to the country but not the right to fly [...]
LOLC Insurance’s Bancassurance agreement with ComBank
LOLC Insurance recently entered into a strategic Bancassurance Partnership with Commercial Bank PLC to strengthen its Bancassurance portfolio and to offer its array of insurance products to a wider customer base. As a result of this strategic tie-up, Commercial Bank clientele will have the opportunity to experience the products and services offered by both LOLC [...]
New CEO, COO at Commercial Bank
The Commercial Bank of Ceylon PLC has announced the appointments of Messrs Sivakrishnarajah Renganathan and Sanath Manatunge, two career bankers who have served the bank for 37 years and 29 years respectively, as Managing Director and Chief Operating Officer (COO), effective July 27. Mr. Renganathan, who has been Commercial Bank’s COO/Executive Director for the past [...]
Integrated Reporting necessary to expose waste and corruption
With the introduction of Integrated Reporting, the accounting profession in Sri Lanka has got a new dimension to take the profession forward that would benefit the country’s economy. “This will not only benefit private and public quoted companies but also the government sector as well,” said Prof. Lakshman R. Watawala, President of the Institute of [...]
Lanka Credit takes over failed CFCL finance company
Lanka Credit and Business Ltd (LCB) has acquired distressed finance company, City Finance Corporation Ltd (CFCL), which was under the purview of the Central Bank of Sri Lanka (CB) in a landmark deal coordinated by NDB Investment Bank Ltd (NDBIB). In a media statement, NDBIB, Sri Lanka’s No. 1 investment bank, said it concluded this [...]
Asia Securities judged best research team at CFA’s Capital Market Awards
Asia Securities (Pvt) Ltd was announced the Best Stockbroking Research Team at the 6th annual Sri Lanka Capital Market Awards hosted by the CFA Society of Sri Lanka, late last month. Asia Securities is the first stock brokerage firm to win this recognition in consecutive years and the CFA Capital Market Awards is the only [...]