Coronavirus hits travel industry
Even as Sri Lanka took preventive measures to combat the spread of the coronavirus in the country, some Chinese tourists in Sri Lanka were seeking to extend their stay as they feel safer here than going back home. The impact has also hit outbound travel in Sri Lanka. One agent was saddled with a large [...]
20 out of 42 licensed finance companies face liquidity issues
Some 20 out of the 42 licensed finance companies in Sri Lanka are presently facing liquidity issues, with some of it at a high level of distress with high percentage of non-performing loans. These 20 non-bank financial institutions are facing difficulties at present, the Central Bank (CB) announced. CB Deputy Governor H A Karunaratne told [...]
Government deviates from FR in Rs.130 bn supplementary estimate
The government will be presenting in Parliament a supplementary estimate of Rs.130 billion more than 25 percent of the allocation made for present capital expenditure and debt repayments from the 4-month vote on account, a move that might deviate from normal protocol. This move is likely to deviate from financial regulations as a supplementary estimate [...]
MTD Walkers to close business
MTD Walkers Plc is planning to sell its assets and wrap up operations, stock market analysts have said. This has come on the wake of MTD Walkers announcing that the sale of about 152 million shares or 90.78 per cent of its stake to well-known businessman Ravi Wijeratne will not be pursued. In a stock [...]
Just as we recover…
“Aiyo mage ath hodanna oney (I must wash by hands),” exclaimed Kussi Amma Sera. The corona-bug seemed to have got to her this morning, in a positive sense with health foremost in her mind, as she waited under the margosa tree for her friends – Serapina and Mabel Rasthiyadu for their regular Thursday morning ‘gossip’. [...]
Trapped by “Swarna Bhoomi” deeds
Rev. Wimalaratana Thero, a Professor at the Colombo University, was in Greece a few weeks ago, attending a conference. After the conference, he travelled to nearby Cyprus for a visit. At the weekend, he walked into a Sunday fair in the capital city – Nicosia, where farmers and small traders gather to sell their produce. [...]
JKH bottom line impacted by series of macro-blows
John Keells Holdings PLC’s year-on-year performance for the quarter was impacted by the downturn in the group’s Sri Lankan leisure business which continued to be impacted by post Easter Sunday terror attacks, exchange losses recorded at the holding company on its foreign currency denominated cash holdings. This is when compared to the significant exchange gains [...]
SMEs struggle against non-payment of dues
Our company has been in operation for the last 18 years but now we are facing a really grave situation which never happened before in which the government is defaulting on its payments to service providers. Government officials are also upset as most have conveyed to us that even their fuel reimbursements and their subsistence [...]
Manjula de Silva appointed new Secretary General/ CEO of the Ceylon Chamber of Commerce
Manjula de Silva has assumed duties as the Secretary General/CEO of the Ceylon Chamber of Commerce from February 1, after incumbent Ms. Dhara Wijayatilake retired from that position — after serving in that capacity since March 2016. Mr. de Silva has held several senior positions in the private sector as well as in the public [...]
MAS Holdings appoints new CEO
MAS Holdings, South Asia’s largest apparel manufacturer, on Thursday announced the appointment of Suren Fernando as its Chief Executive Officer with effect from January 1, 2020, the first non-family CEO of the organisation. This appointment signals a fundamental shift from the founding members to the next level of leaders equipped to take MAS forward, meeting [...]
Danish based Grundfos promotes intelligent water solutions in Sri Lanka
Global pump manufacturer Grundfos recently opened its digital lab in Singapore – the first of its kind by the industry leader in Asia-Pacific – as a strategic initiative to drive greater adoption of intelligent water solutions in countries in the region including Sri Lanka, company officials said. The lab will showcase Grundfos’ range of I [...]
Start-ups: Fishing for small fish in a large pond
Sri Lanka’s start-ups have come a long way – powering innovation, pushing limits and boosting the extraordinary influence entrepreneurs have on the marketplace. As a result venture capitalists, which sort of ignite start-ups, now have a big pool to choose from. So much so that a local venture capitalist had met over 250 start-ups last [...]
Mastercard’s latest ‘priceless’ destination is Sri Lanka
Customer experience is set to be the number one brand differentiator and increasingly firms are realising that “delivering a great customer experience” has become a top strategic objective. There is something about a moment in time that can’t be replicated, an experience that is your very own, an adventure with others that is intensely personal [...]
Onyx Industries: New-found strength in construction in Sri Lanka
Given the current trends in the field of construction, more businesses seeking to establish warehouses, shopping malls, showrooms, restaurants, fuel marts or any other facility are turning towards the use of steel fabrication. Fabricated steel is gaining increased popularity because it is cost-effective not only to construct, but to de-construct as well. Particularly this is [...]
Iraq, Sri Lanka’s largest buyer of tea in 2018
Iraq was the largest buyer of Ceylon Tea in 2018 purchasing a quantity of 13.5 million kgs. This was revealed by (Rtd) Maj Gen Niranjan Ranasinghe, former Ambassador of Sri Lanka in Iraq while addressing the Sri Lanka – Kurdistan Business Forum organised by the Ceylon Chamber of Commerce held this week in the chamber [...]
Evening of public speaking on Feb 11 at the BMICH
“TALKING TITANS” is a public speaking and social etiquette training institute headed by Amalka Perera, a well experienced public speaking and leadership coach. It is a niche organisation aiming to groom young adults in public speaking and leadership in order to help them groom and develop in becoming potential boardroom material and prepare them for [...]
Authentic Italian flavours and dazzling city views at Il Cielo
Il Cielo is welcoming diners to explore the many flavours of authentic Italian cuisine, offering a taste of la dolce vita in the heart of Colombo. The rooftop restaurant is located down Hunupitiya Lake Road and it imparts a genuine feel of an authentic Italian dining space. Wrapped in floor-to-ceiling windows, Il Cielo offers its [...]
Central Bank Governor predicts over 4% economic growth this year
Sri Lanka’s economic growth will exceed 4 per cent this year due to notable improvement in business confidence caused by political stability and targeted measures taken by authorities to boost demand, Central Bank (CB) Governor Prof. W.D. Lakshman disclosed at a media conference in Colombo on Thursday. “Revival in economic activity and confidence, fiscal measures, [...]
18 kg in just one hour at Hayleys Best Tea Plucker Competition
Talawakelle Tea Estates (TTEL) made history after the company emerged as overall winners at the inaugural Hayleys Plantations Best Tea Plucker Competition 2020. TTEL’s victory was sealed by the Bearwell Estate Tea Harvester Palaniselvi who plucked an incredible 9.7kg of prime tea in just 30 minutes – amounting to a harvesting rate of 19.4 kg [...]
SL transport sector plagued with problems:Studies reveal
Several studies done recently have found problems associated with the transport sector in the country such as heavy traffic congestion in urban areas due to poor traffic management, indisciplined drivers, and outdated fleet of vehicles. Around 7-8 persons die daily due to road accidents in the country, said Minister of Passenger Transport Management Mahinda Amaraweera, [...]
iFarm Platform offers value-added services to empower local farmers
SANASA General Insurance Company Ltd, together with Deutsche Gesellschaft für Internationale Zusammenarbeit (GIZ) GmbH, recently launched iFarm, a simple and secure online insurance platform to support the local farming community. The platform gives local farmers access to a host of insurance products offered by SANASA General Insurance under two main categories – weather index-based policies [...]
GSP+ till 2023 but process not automatic
The European Union’s (EU) GSP + facility regained by Sri Lanka in 2017 providing market free access for local exporters to European countries will remain till 2023 but this continuation process will not be automatic. This was reiterated by Ambassador Denis Chaibi, Head of the EU Delegation to Sri Lanka and the Maldives when he [...]
Tokyo Cement Group’s progress in coral conservation
Tokyo Cement Group is deeply involved in coral reef conservation for nearly a decade, making it one of their keystone environmental sustainability initiatives. The cement group formed a consortium of partners to share expertise to restore the severely threatened Coral Reef barrier along the Sri Lankan shoreline. These like-minded environmentalist organisations each bring in a [...]
Star Garment Group awarded Carbon Neutral certificate
The first apparel company to open its factory at the Free Trade Zone Katunayake with one factory and 300 employees, grew up to 5000 employees with six factories in 2015. In 2018 Star Garment owned 10 factories with 8000 employees, said the Star Group Managing Director A. Sukumaran at a function held at the Shangri [...]
MillionSpaces wins at SLASSCOM’s ‘Innovation Awards’
MillionSpaces, an online marketplace where users discover and book unique spaces and venues for various events, was bestowed with the 1st Runner-Up for the highly-coveted ‘Best Disruptor Award’ at the annual ‘Innovation Awards and Gala 2019’, hosted by SLASSCOM at the Shangri-La Hotel, Colombo recently. The awards recognise and celebrate innovators across a range of [...]
Sri Lanka to achieve ‘ambitious target’ in exports
Sri Lanka is looking at increasing its exports by ensuring all state institutions work towards this end with a focus on the ASEAN bloc and achieving an ‘ambitious target’. New Export Development Board (EDB) Chairman Prabhash Subasinghe was concerned that Sri Lanka’s export statistics were remarkably ‘very poor’ compared to other countries in the region. [...]