Category: Economy and Markets
Sri Lanka still has room for foreigners to buy bonds: CB Governor
Sept 24, 2009 (LBO) – A limit of 10 percent of outstanding government bonds remains in place, and foreign investors still have room to buy Sri Lanka government bonds, Central Bank Governor Nivard Cabraal said.“The limits remains the same,” Governor Cabraal said. “There is no change. “The borrowings will take place as and when the […]
Sri Lanka IMF document suppressed by government decision: official
Sept 23, 2009 (LBO) – Detailed International Monetary Fund documents showing the underlying basis for a stand-by loan to Sri Lanka have not been released by a decision of the island’s government, an official said.A storm has brewing in Sri Lanka over the suppression of IMF documents. Muttukrishna Sarvananthan, from the Point Pedro Institute of […]
Sri Lankan stocks becalmed
Sep 23, 2009 (LBO) – Sri Lankan shares closed flat Wednesday as investors took profits while foreigners continued to be net buyers, brokers said.National Development Bank closed at 190.75 rupees, down 2.75, while Seylan Bank closed flat at 34.00 rupees. Retailer favorite Touchwood closed at 91.75 rupees, down 75 cents, while Lanka Cement closed flat […]
Sri Lanka 3-month bill yield in single digits
Sept 23, 2009 (LBO) – Sri Lanka’s 3-month Treasury bill yields fell 34 basis points to 9.70 percent at Wednesday’s auction, the government’s debt office said. The debt office, which is a unit of the Central Bank said out of 9,500 million rupees maturing bills 9,500 million rupees’ worth had been sold to the market. […]
Sri Lanka lawmakers fiscally clueless: legal activist
Sept 22, 2009 (LBO) – Sri Lanka’s parliament lacked a permanent fiscal affairs committee paving the way for “mythical” budgets and lawmakers lacked capacity and research to constructively probe public spending and bodies, a legal activist has said. “Take, for example, the parliamentary oversight committee, COPE (Committee on Public Enterprises) tasked with dealing with all […]
Sri Lanka economic revival better than expected: IMF
Sept 22, 2009 (LBO) – Sri Lanka’s economic revival is better than originally expected when the International Monetary Fund approved a stand by loan, and tax revenues are improving, a review mission said in Colombo. The IMF was originally expecting 3.0 percent growth for the island for 2009 but has revised it up to 3.5 […]
Sri Lanka shares down on profit taking
Sept 22, 2009 (LBO) – Sri Lankan stocks fell Tuesday dragged down mainly by heavyweight Sri Lanka Telecom and banks as investors took profits from the rally in prices in recent weeks, brokers said.“The market came down mainly due to profit taking,” said Hatangala. “We saw prices dropping in banking stocks and SLT.” SLT closed […]
‘s exchange rate gamble likely to be repeated, ask economists
Sept 21 2009 (LBO) – Will Sri Lanka’s latest balance of payments crisis, triggered by an unstable peg be a lesson for the future, or was it a gamble which was barely won but is doomed to be repeated again, economists at a conference in Colombo asked.Sri Lanka tried to defend a dollar peg when […]
Sri Lanka women workers to face brunt of EU GSP loss
Sept 20, 200 (LBO) – Women workers would be hardest hit if the European Union withdraws duty free market access to Sri Lankan exports, given to countries that meet a governance and a rights threshold set by the trade bloc.The potential loss of the GSP Plus duty concession could lead to job losses if Sri […]
Sri Lanka to use monetary policy tool mix to target inflation: CB official
Sept 19, 2009 (LBO) – Sri Lanka was ready to change intermediate targets or vary its policy tools dynamically to keep inflation low, a senior central banker said, though the final inflation target is as yet somewhat loosely defined.Sri Lanka’s central bank has a loosely defined inflation target of “single digit”.In 2007 and 2008 Sri […]
Sri Lanka exports fall 18.9-pct, imports 35.3-pct to July
Sept 18, 2009 (LBO) – Sri Lanka exports fell 18.9 percent in the 7-months to July while imports fell 35.3 percent as a trade contraction continued, while the trade deficit narrowed 6.5 percent to 1,883 million US dollars. In July exports fell 23.1 percent to 652.2 million compared with exceptionally high growth recorded last year, […]
Sri Lanka shares becalmed, profit taking seen
Sept 18, 2009 (LBO) – Sri Lankan stocks ended flat Friday with trading heavy but volatile and some profit taking seen and investors buying blue chips in anticipation of future foreign buying, brokers said. To receive instant alerts from LBO on your Dialog mobile type ‘lbo’ and send to 678 The All Share Price Index […]