News
US$ 1b in sovereign bonds from Panda and Samurai
Sri Lanka is set to go for an international sovereign bond issue to raise US$ 1 billion through Panda (China) and Samurai (Japan) bonds after receiving Cabinet approval for the proposal.
Treasury and Central Bank officials will shortly visit Japan and China before the implementation of the plan aimed at easing the current economic crisis.
A senior Treasury official said they were planning to raise US$ 500 million each from the Panda and Samurai bonds. They are also planning to raise euro bonds to ensure that the dollar crisis has a limited impact on the country’s
economy.
He said that, in the recent months, the US dollar’s appreciation had an impact on the economy and the business. Thus he believed the raising of non-dollar bonds would minimise the impact.
The moves come as an International Monetary Fund team is in Sri Lanka to resume discussions on a US$ 260 million loan. The delegation is expected to meet Treasury and Central Bank officials.The IMF has disbursed more than US$ 1 billion out of a US$ 1.5 billion three-year EFF (Extended Fund Facility) loan it had agreed to give Sri Lanka in 2016.