Beating the price hike
The government has initiated a programme where railway commuters can pick up a package of 10 types of vegetables and rice, sugar, dhal and salmon in a separate pack at reasonable prices. The programme was launched at the Maradana Railway Station on Thursday and will continue during week days at Fort and other stations too. [...]
Ethanol ban to dent major bottlers
Ethanol, the main ingredient for making arrack manufacturers such as Distilleries Company PLC (DCSL) which is also the largest hard liquor manufacturer in the country, will face challenges in the coming year, on the back of the government’s decision to ban ethanol imports. The Finance Ministry said the import of ethanol for liquor production will [...]
State agencies to maintain strict financial discipline
Strict financial discipline is to be maintained in all state agencies during the first four months of 2020 at the beginning of the new decade as the public expenditure should be made in accordance with the Vote on Account, official sources said. Reallocation of budgetary provisions approved by the Vote on Account 2020 to the [...]
LOLC tailing high market cap
LOLC prices went up to Rs. 190 on Tuesday bringing it to the fifth largest stock in market cap on the Colombo bourse at Rs. 90 billion on the back of the impending Rs. 108 billion sale of its part stake in Cambodia’s PRASAC Microfinance to Korean KB Kookmin Bank. This is the largest transaction [...]
Sri Lanka’s tasteful venture into global foods
Ingredients found in Sri Lanka have made taste buds from around the world wanting more of their favourite global brands in chocolates, spice mixes and bakery products. Ferrero Rocher and Mars’ Bounty chocolates, Kellogg’s breakfast foods and Vita Coco, McCormick Spices, Mexican cinnamon breads and even Gourmet Spice and Jumbo Spices add spices like Cinnamon, [...]
New team takes over Sri Lanka’s economic future
Sri Lanka Telecom (SLT) Chairman P.G. Kumarasinghe Sirisena, brother of former President Maithripala Sirisena, is yet to vacate his post as of Friday though asked to do so in line with other heads of state agencies being asked to step down, while new appointments to the chairs of the Ceylon Electricity Board and the Ceylon [...]
Benefiting from VAT
For the third week running, the discussion among the trio was about vegetable and rice prices which have skyrocketed. The hapless vegetable seller, Simon, who unfortunately came around on a day when Kussi Amma Sera was belting out her fury in conversation with Serapina and Mabel Rasthiyadu, got the brunt of the anger over rising [...]
Ushering the nation to the first world
It is the dawn of a new year, 2020 as well as the dawn of a new decade, the 2020s. For Sri Lanka it is the dawn of a new administration with the recent Presidential election as well as the forthcoming Parliamentary election. I thought of posing an important question: Should we live in a [...]
Large number of journos to visit Sri Lanka
A congregation of 23 journalists, each representing 23 different press and media enterprises of France and Belgium, is due to arrive in Sri Lanka on January 18 on a familiarisation tour organised by Salaun Holidays, one of the leading tour operators in France. Initiated by Chairman and Proprietor of Connaissance de Ceylan and Theme Resorts [...]
Vehicle revenue licence issuance via online loses public appeal
The Motor Traffic Department’s (MTD) e Revenue licence (eRL) project introduced 11 years ago to make this vehicle licence issuance manageable for the department and convenient for vehicle owners is still to achieve the expected results, official data revealed. Vehicle owners would still visit divisional secretariats to renew their vehicle revenue licences although this facility [...]
Kanchana Ratwatte assumes office as Bank of Ceylon’s new chairman
Kanchana Ratwatte assumed office as Bank of Ceylon’s new Chairman on January 2 at the Bank of Ceylon Head Office. The bank’s CEO/ General Manager Senarath Bandara and members of the Corporate Management warmly welcomed the new Chairman to his office at the 29th floor. Mr. Ratwatte has had his primary and secondary education at [...]
Dialog package offers unlimited data for YouTube
Dialog Axiata PLC has introduced ‘4G Video Blaster’ – Sri Lanka’s first-ever prepaid and postpaid mobile data plan offering unlimited data to access the YouTube platform. With the ‘4G Video Blaster’ customers can enjoy YouTube for as long as they like, without ever having to worry about their data usage. ‘4G Video Blaster’ unlocks a [...]
S-lon launches 360° communication campaign themed ‘S-lon inside’
S-lon Lanka Pvte Ltd, a flagship company affiliated to The Capital Maharaja Organisation Ltd, has embarked on its latest communication campaign ‘S-lon inside’. The new thematic campaign ‘S-lon inside’ ensures consumers the happiness they deserve with the water that flows through their pipe fittings within the walls of each home whilst enabling protection with the [...]
Spiralation fosters tech start-ups to improve national economy
Spiralation, a tech-startup supportive programme organised by the Information and Technology Agency of Sri Lanka (ICTA), has facilitated 16 tech start-ups through seed funding, comprehensive training, workshops and guidance. Twelve selected start-ups were funded Rs.1.5 million each along with comprehensive training, endorsement by the government and opportunities to develop locally and internationally and the other [...]
WB loan to improve public sector efficiency, transparency
The World Bank on Tuesday approved a US$25 million loan to the Government of Sri Lanka to improve the transparency and efficiency of core government and public financial management functions. The Public Sector Efficiency Strengthening Project (PSEP) will help strengthen the institutional capacity of the Ministry of Finance to improve efficiency and deliver better services. [...]
Trident Corp sweeps the board at HP Awards Night 2019
Trident Corporation swept the board with five awards at the recently concluded HP Awards Night 2019 held at Weligama Bay Marriott Resort & Spa. Held under the theme “Gentlemen beyond the Boundary”, the company awards including the Best Distributor 2019 – Consumer Personal Systems and Best Distributor 2019 – Print Supplies and Best Service Partner [...]
ISM APAC appoints its first Sri Lankan Managing Director
ISM APAC, the regional arm of Netherlands-based e-commerce company ISM e-Group, has announced the appointment of its first Sri Lankan Managing Director, Priyantha Bethmage after the two Dutch General Managers of the company bid farewell. With its head office located in IT Park Orion City in Colombo, ISM APAC today has over five years of [...]
“Smart Sri Lanka initiative becomes a white elephant”
Eric Weerawardhana, founder and former Director General of Smart Sri Lanka, has sent the following letter referring to the Business Times story on December 22 titled “Smart Sri Lanka initiative becomes a white elephant”, denying various sections of the story. His letter says: “Smart Sri Lanka which is an innovative system was started in February [...]
SriLankan Airlines concludes an award-winning year
SriLankan Airlines, the country’s national carrier reaffirming the success of its marketing communication endeavours, has concluded the year with seven global awards. The airline’s communication focus that signifies its ambassadorial role of taking Sri Lanka to the world through a global dialect, has been well received by the public and the passengers, and was recognised [...]
LAUGFS Rubber unveils largest tyre manufactured in Sri Lanka
LAUGFS Corporation (Rubber) Ltd (LAUGFS Rubber) recently unveiled the latest addition to its product portfolio with its Super Solid Loader Grip Tyre, the largest tyre to be manufactured in Sri Lanka. LAUGFS Super Solid Tyres are designed with extra deep tread and robust lugs to provide traction and durability for tough off the road applications [...]
CICT ends 2019 with 2.9 m TEUs, 40% of Colombo Port’s volume
Colombo International Container Terminals (CICT) has announced it handled a total of 2.9 million TEUs in 2019, achieving an 8.6 per cent increase in its throughput and accounting for 40 per cent of the volume of the Port of Colombo in the 12 months ending December 2019. The company, which manages the Colombo South Terminal, [...]
Vipul C. Jayaratne assumes duties as Chairman of Galle Chamber
Vipul C. Jayaratne was ceremonially inducted as the Chairman of the Board of Directors of Galle District Chamber of Commerce and Industries by the Immediate Past Chairman Dhammika Lokuge, at a ceremony held on December 28 at the auditorium of the Galle District Chamber of Commerce and Industries. Before being selected as the Chairman, he [...]
SL Plastics and Rubber Institute signs MOU with Singapore institute
The Plastics and Rubber Institute of Sri Lanka (PRISL) has signed an MOU with the Plastics and Rubber Institute of Singapore. This was announced by the President of the PRISL, Kaushal Rajapaksa at the institute’s Annual Awards Night held recently at the Taj Samudra Hotel. Karu Jayasuriya, Speaker of the Parliament of Sri Lanka and [...]
On Indian beauty culturists story
With reference to the report in last week’s Business Times titled “Indian Beauty Culturists tap Lankan Salon Industry”, Valoremjuris, Attorneys-at-law, writing on behalf of its client Naturals Grooming Lanka (Pvt) Ltd, has sent the following letter: “These statements (in the story) convey and imply a false message to the public in general and to the [...]
Government reviews new Excise Act
The government will review the new Excise Act which has been drafted by amalgamating the archaic 100 year-old Excise Ordinance and Tobacco Act during the last days of the previous regime, a senior Excise Department official who wished to remain anonymous told the Business Times. A single legal framework has been proposed under the new [...]
Wellness tourism industry gets its own association
Practitioners in the wellness tourism industry have endorsed the formation of the Sri Lanka Wellness Tourism Association (SLWTA), seen as a long felt need by those actively involved in the industry. More than 50 reputed companies from the western medicine profession, indigenous Ayurveda practitioners and others engaged in wellness tourism activities such as Western SPA’s, [...]
SL- Iran continues barter deal talks
Sri Lanka continues to engage Iranian authorities to initiate the proposed barter agreement of tea for oil, a top official said on Wednesday. Sri Lanka Tea Board (SLTB) Chairman Jayampathy Molligoda speaking with the Business Times said that Sri Lankan authorities have last week submitted more details as required by Iranian authorities to carry out [...]
Blockchain implementation in Sri Lanka
The Fortune Business Insight estimated that the global blockchain technology market size is expected to reach US$21,070 million by the end of 2025, with a compound annual growth rate of 38.4 per cent, showing a promising start for the upcoming technology. In a blockchain, transactions can be thought of as “blocks”, once verified by a [...]