Sri Lanka Tourism running out of cash
A commission amounting to US$1.6 million had been remitted to a dollar account of the Sri Lanka Tourism Development Authority (SLTDA) via insurance payments made by tourists via People’s Insurance PLC; but today, authorities claim there is no money in their kitty to pay for travel fairs. During the COVID-19 pandemic when the country opened [...]
Private banks shun ‘politically exposed persons’
With the escalating political unrest private banks are increasingly shedding relationships with Politically Exposed Persons (PEP), officials in the banking sector said. Some banks have noticed large withdrawals from PEPs which made them conduct trigger reviews on their accounts. These are basically event-driven reviews that are based on changes in customer profiles warranting a fresh [...]
Printing money to pay state salaries
Sri Lanka’s Finance Ministry is facing one of its worst-ever cash crunch with no way to raise revenue even to pay salaries of 1.5 million public sector employees’ unless through increasing borrowing limits and printing money, official sources said. This has become a challenge at the moment due to political instability making it a mission [...]
Military security boost for BOI zones
The military has beefed up security at Sri Lanka’s Free Trade Zones (FTZs) where export manufacturing facilities are located to ensure the safety and smooth operation of the zones. In this respect, the Board of Investment (BOI) has been “communicating with the Sri Lanka Police and the Army to ensure the safety of all the [...]
“Way forward “plan devised to tackle the crisis
Sri Lanka’s caretaker government headed by newly appointed Prime Minister Ranil Wickremesinghe has a challenging task of implementing the required policy measures and structural reforms to improve the fiscal performance, Finance Ministry sources said. The ministry has already devised a fiscal plan of “Way forward” to operationalise necessary measures to build the credibility of the [...]
Scraping the barrel
In dire straits. That’s the pitiful state of Sri Lanka’s economy and what bigger warning than one coming from the newly-appointed Governor of the Central Bank. Governor Dr. Nandalal Weerasinghe who took over in April, at a media conference on Wednesday warned that he would resign in the coming weeks if political instability continues. He [...]
Youth: Losing their future
It is not a new feature of the Sri Lankan political economy – frustration of the country’s “educated youth” at present times as well as in the past! When they realise about their hopeless future, a significant portion of the frustrated youth can be mobilised for a different cause; today they have mobilised themselves for [...]
Over 60% crop loss this Yala season
Sri Lanka is expected to face over a 60 per cent drop in paddy yields this Yala season (May-August) as the cultivation has already begun without chemical fertilizer. The country will be heading for another crisis in a shortage of food as the expected drop in yields is over 60 per cent during this Yala [...]
Sri Lanka’s exports grow in Feb. 2022
The momentum of Sri Lanka’s export earnings continued with over US$ 1 billion for the ninth consecutive month in February 2022. Meanwhile, import expenditure also increased substantially in February 2022, year-on-year, while recording a decline, compared to the previous month. The trade deficit widened, compared to the year before. Tourist arrivals showed a notable recovery [...]
Sampath Bank strong despite challenging economic environment
Sampath Bank, despite extremely challenging economic conditions which prevailed, registered a profit before tax (PBT) of Rs. 6.5 billion and a profit after tax (PAT) of Rs. 4.7 billion for the three months ended 31st March 2022, indicating marginal growth of 5.3 per cent and 2.9 per cent respectively from the figures reported in Q1 [...]
Steady performance from NTB amidst turbulence
Nations Trust Bank PLC has reported steady growth in the first quarter of the financial year ending 31 March 2022 amidst challenging local and global macro-economic conditions, the bank announced this week. The bank posted a 4 per cent year-on-year (YoY) increase in Profit Before Tax for the period under review, it said in a [...]
SL’s CB call to expatriates for help with dollars
The Central Bank (CB), to combat the forex crisis, is actively looking for ways to source dollars from Sri Lankan expatriates, officials said. This came on the back of the newly appointed Governor Dr. Nandalal Weerasinghe telling reporters on Wednesday that he has corresponded to all political parties including the President, that if no political [...]
Inflation has sky-rocketed
The current crisis is much worse than people think. There will be a relatively long period of misery for many before any chance of a real economic turnaround. As an academic without a political agenda, it is my job to give the public an honest take on the magnitude of the current economic situation and [...]
ComBank Group navigates devaluation impact in complex Q1 performance
The Commercial Bank Group has posted a balanced financial performance for the first quarter of 2022, highly influenced by the sharp devaluation of the Rupee impacting key performance indicators both positively and negatively. The group, comprising the Commercial Bank of Ceylon PLC, its subsidiaries and an associate, reported gross income of Rs. 54.573 billion, total [...]
SL’s biz community urges President to step down
The Joint Chambers of Sri Lankan business together with the Institute of Chartered Accountants of Sri Lanka has urged the President to take immediate steps to appoint a competent person as the interim Prime Minister and a small Cabinet of Ministers. It has also said the President should resign after an interim cabinet is formed. [...]
NCE, USAID help access to US food and beverage market
The National Chamber of Exporters of Sri Lanka (NCE) and the United States Agency for International Development (USAID) is offering the second online course to become certified as a Preventative Controls Qualified Individual (PCQI), a U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) requirement in order for firms to export to the U.S. food and beverage market. [...]
Luminex IPO postponed to May 19
Luminex Ltd this week postponed its May 12 launch of the Rs. 250 million initial Public Offering (IPO) of 31,250,000 ordinary shares at Rs. 8 per share. It will now open on May 19, the postponement attributed to the current unrest in the country and after consultations with the Colombo Stock Exchange. The issue, when [...]
EU grants Rs.60 mln to support small tourism businesses
The Delegation of the European Union in Sri Lanka (EU) and the Sri Lanka Tourism Development Authority (SLTDA) recently awarded the first three grants – worth Rs.1 million each – to small tourism enterprises to help them accelerate their post COVID-19 recovery and build a stronger base for growth as tourists start returning to the [...]
CPC cuts fuel supply by 50 % to save stocks
Sri Lanka is likely to run out of petrol and diesel soon with the reduction of fuel supply to filling stations by 50 per cent due to dwindling of stocks and exhausting the US$ 500 million Indian line of credit amidst the unprecedented shortage of foreign reserves, Ceylon Petroleum Corporation (CPC) sources said. CEYPETCO provides [...]
AIMG Sri Lanka partners with Montrela Consultants
The Association of International Marketing Graduates in Sri Lanka (AIMGSL) recently entered into a strategic partnership with Montrela Consultants Ltd Sri Lanka, an international migration consultancy. The partnership will act as a gateway for marketing professionals to receive exclusive access to Montrela Consultants services in order to successfully relocate to competitive markets in Canada, the [...]
Sunshine pulls out of investment deal
Diversified conglomerate, Sunshine Holdings PLC on Monday pulled out of a deal to acquire Hemsons International (Pvt) Ltd. In a statement to the Colombo Stock Exchange, the Board of Sunshine Holdings PLC said Sunshine Healthcare Lanka Ltd has decided not to proceed with the acquisition of Hemsons International [...]
Nestlé staffers win ‘Cannes Lions Young Marketer Competition’
Nestlé Lanka’s Samaridu Vitharana and Minindu Alles emerged first at the coveted Cannes Lions Young Marketer Competition 2022. Having won the local title, the duo will now represent Sri Lanka at ‘Cannes Lions International Festival of Creativity’ set to be held in June, Nestle said in a media release. Organised by the Sri Lanka Institute [...]