Category: Economy and Markets
IMF Executive Board Approves USD3 Bn Under the Extended Fund Facility (EFF) Arrangement
The Executive Board of the International Monetary Fund (IMF) approved today a 48‑month extended arrangement under the Extended Fund Facility (EFF) with an amount of SDR 2.286 billion (395 percent of quota or about US$3 billion). Sri Lanka has been hit hard by a catastrophic economic and humanitarian crisis.The economy is facing significant challenges stemming […]
Opinion: IMF Programme #17, Takes two to tango
By Daniel Alphonsus Countries never learn from others’ mistakes, they only learn from their own. Sri Lanka is an exception: we don’t even learn from our folly. Apparently neither does the IMF. Sri Lanka’s 17th IMF programme is set to be approved on March 20th. Is it welcome? Yes. Will it break Sri Lanka’s reform-regress-run […]
Ceylinco Life retains market leadership for 19th consecutive year in 2022
Ceylinco Life policyholders received a mammoth Rs 18.9 billion in net claims and benefits in 2022, as the Company achieved its 19th consecutive year of market leadership in Sri Lanka’s life insurance sector with gross written premium income of Rs 29.16 billion for the 12 months ending 31 st December. Premium income grew by a […]
Sri Lanka records 7.8-pct negative growth for 2022
The Department of Census and Statistics (DCS) states that the year-on-year GDP growth rate for the year 2022 has been estimated as a 7.8 percent negative growth, against the value reported in the previous year 2021. Further, the Gross Domestic Product for Sri Lanka for the year 2022 at the constant price (2015) has declined […]
Eran urges Govt to disclose contents in IMF agreement
Even though the present government said no, the Samagi Jana Balawega emphasized from the beginning that this country needs some sort of agreement and financial assistance from the International Monetary Fund because it gives a signal to the international market that there is a financial discipline in the country paving the way for bilateral and […]
First Capital maintains domestic debt restructuring probability low at 20-pct
First Capital maintains the domestic debt restructuring (DDR) probability at 20%, highlighting that the domestic debt restructuring probabilities stand low for Sri Lanka. Following are the arguments for and against presented by First Capital in terms of DDR. Arguments Against Local Debt Restructuring • Rupee investors equivalent to having suffered debt restructuring: With the steep […]
World Bank Group invites public to provide feedback for new country partnership framework
The World Bank Group (WBG) is preparing its new partnership framework with Sri Lanka for the 2023–2026 period. The process involves consultations with a broad range of stakeholders – with representatives from government, international financial institutions, civil society organizations, think tanks, academia, and the private sector – to exchange views on opportunities for Sri Lanka’s […]
Opinion: HNB reiterates importance of developing a national savings culture
HNB Deputy General Manager – Retail and SME Banking, Sanjay Wijemanne As more Sri Lankans face concerns over their personal financial security, and that of the country, HNB is working to help raise awareness on the opportunities that every Sri Lankan can access, in order to develop their savings habits, and help drive an effective […]
Local-Currency IDR would be downgraded if govt announces plans to restructure or defaults on local debt: Fitch
The Long-Term Local-Currency IDR would be further downgraded if the government announces plans to restructure or defaults on its local-currency debt, says Fitch Ratings. Releasing a statement, the agency pointed out that the issue of whether to include local-currency debt in any restructuring will be one of the factors complicating debt negotiations. Fitch downgraded Sri […]
SL welcomes UN agreement to protect high seas
Sri Lanka welcomes the conclusion of negotiations on a landmark agreement to enhance the international legal regime concerning the conservation of marine biological diversity in the High Seas which concluded on 4th March at the United Nations Headquarters, New York, Ministry of Foreign Affairs said in a statement released today. The agreement covers almost two-thirds […]
Sri Lanka’s Probable IMF Support Deal Positive for Debt Negotiations: Fitch Ratings
Fitch Ratings believes Sri Lanka is likely to secure financing support from the IMF after the fund’s Executive Board set a date of 20 March to review the USD2.9 billion staff-level agreement that the country signed with the IMF in September 2022. IMF funding should improve Sri Lanka’s external liquidity, but the timing of any […]
Engineering equity fireside chat by Virtusa
Virtusa, a global provider of digital strategy, digital engineering and IT services and solutions, will host the global Engineering Equity hackathon, to spur innovation in tech solutions that advance gender equity while nurturing female talent. Over 65,000 female students from 9 countries including Sri Lanka registered for the hybrid event, which offers built-in mentoring along […]