Category: Economy and Markets
Japanese ambassadors in five SAARC countries meet Foreign Minister Ravi
June 28, 2017 (LBO) – Japanese ambassadors in five SAARC countries India, Nepal, Maldives, Pakistan and Bangladesh met Foreign Minister Ravi Karunanayake Tuesday at the Ministry. “The ambassadors hailed the ongoing development activities in Sri Lanka and pointed out the growth in the country is a matter of pride for other nations in the region,” […]
PTL Watch: Bond yields edge higher, more OMO
[pdf-embedder url=”http://www.lankabusinessonline.com/wp-content/uploads/2017/06/PTL-Daily-Market-Report-27th-June-2017-1.pdf” title=”PTL Daily Market Report 27th June 2017 (1)”]
Laugfs enters residential apartment development
June 27, 2017 (LBO) – Sri Lanka’s Laugfs Property Developers, a subsidiary of Laugfs Gas PLC, has formed a fully owned subsidiary to undertake residential apartment complex projects. The new entity, Laugfs on Reid (Private) Limited, incorporated under the Companies Act last week, is located at their head office premises. Laugfs Property Developers (Private) Limited […]
New share transaction fees to be effective from next week
June 23, 2017 (LBO) – Sri Lanka’s securities regulator has directed all licensed stock brokers and dealers to comply with the new fee structure which will be effective from 27 June 2017. The CSE proposed adopting a step-up fee structure rather than the present flat fee structure when consolidating transactions for the purpose of computing […]
Sri Lanka should relax issuing licenses for beer & wine: FinMin
June 23, 2017 (LBO) – Sri Lanka’s Finance Minister told Parliament Thursday that the country needs to relax issuing liquor licenses for beer & wine as it may reduce illegal liquor consumption. Minister Mangala Samaraweera said the ministry is now collecting information and is having discussions with the relevant parties with regard to the issue […]
Central Bank holds key rates unchanged, reserves climb
June 23, 2017 (LBO) – Sri Lanka’s central bank held key interest rates unchanged on Friday after a monthly monetary policy meeting with inflation moderating in April and May, and the economy expected to recover in the second half. “Growth in the first quarter was weighed down by the impact of unfavourable weather conditions, particularly […]
‘s IFC to sell Sri Lanka rupee bonds
June 22, 2017 (LBO) – Sri Lanka’s government has approved a proposal to establish an offshore Sri Lankan Rupee (LKR) Bond Programme by the International Finance Corporation, a statement said. The program is beneficial to Sri Lanka, and the Cabinet Committee on Economic Management has recommended its implementation, the most recently approved cabinet decisions statement […]
Sri Lanka inflation slows to 7.1-pct in May 2017
June 22, 2017 (LBO) – Sri Lanka’s inflation according to the National Consumer Price Index (NCPI) was down to 7.1 percent in May 2017 from 8.4 percent in April, the Census and Statistics Department said. The NCPI for all items for the month of May 2017 was 121.8, an increase of 0.8 index points or […]
Sri Lanka to postpone SVAT abolition till end 2017
June 22, 2017 (LBO) – Sri Lanka’s cabinet approval has been granted to postpone the abolition of SVAT system until the end of this year. Accordingly, the SVAT abolition will take effect from 01 January 2018 after the necessary legislation is passed through Parliament. This decision has been taken in order to give sufficient time […]
Central Bank expected to keep key rates unchanged: First Capital
June 21, 2017 (LBO) – The Central Bank of Sri Lanka is expected to keep key interest rates unchanged in its monthly monetary policy announcement on Friday, with slower first quarter growth and a deceleration in inflation contributing to the decision, First Capital Research said in a pre-policy research note. GDP growth for the first […]
Fitch expects more interest rate pressure for Sri Lankan corporates
June 20, 2017 (LBO) – Fitch Ratings says it expects rising domestic interest rates to hurt Sri Lankan corporates over the next 12 months. Releasing a statement, the rating agency said borrowing costs of corporates have increased more than 200bp in the 12 months to March 2017. The Central Bank increased policy rates by 125bp […]
Auditor General’s opinion creates chaos in Parliament
June 20, 2017 (LBO) – Sri Lanka’s Parliament on Tuesday referred the controversial annual report of the Finance Ministry to the Committee on Public Finance amid chaos in Parliament. The Auditor General, expressing his view on the finance ministry accounts of 2016, said that he is not been able to obtain sufficient and appropriate audit […]