Category: Economy and Markets
Sri Lanka central bank sees room for rate cuts
May 13, 2009 (LBO) – Sri Lanka’s central bank Governor Ajith Nivard Cabraal said there was more room to cut rates and hinted that the monetary authority may return to a single signal policy rate.So far this year the monetary authority has cut its de facto main signal rate, the penal reverse repo rate, from […]
Sri Lanka submits seabed claim to UN
May 12, 2009 (LBO) – Sri Lanka formally presented its claim for sovereignty over an extended continental shelf around the island under international law to the United Nations last Friday, government officials said. The claim will be considered at the 24th session of the UN Commission on the Limits of the Continental Shelf to be […]
Sri Lanka stocks down, rupee loses ground
May 12, 2009 (LBO) – Sri Lankan shares came down Tuesday on fears that a 1.9 billion dollar International Monetary Fund bailout was delayed, while the rupee weakened against the dollar, brokers and dealers said. The rupee opened at 117.05/117.25 and fell to 117.25/0117.45 levels by late afternoon trade. In the stock market the All […]
Sri Lanka Jan-Feb state revenues shrink 10.6-pct
May 11, 2009 (LBO) – Sri Lanka’s state revenues have fallen 10.6 percent in the two months to February 2009, amid a slowing economy and collapsing imports while expenses are still rising, the latest official data shows. Inflation It is unusual for Sri Lanka’s revenues to fall on an absolute basis. Coupled with inflation, Sri […]
Sri Lankan shares up, rupee steady
May 11, 2009 (LBO) – Profit taking helped to subdue gains in Sri Lankan stocks Monday while the rupee continued to hold against the dollar, traders and brokers said. The rupee opened the day at 116.70/117.00 levels and strengthened to 116.50/70 levels by mid afternoon but weakened by late afternoon to trade at 117.00/117.10, dealers […]
Sri Lanka central bank net forex buyer in April: official data
May 11, 2009 (LBO) – Sri Lanka’s central bank has bought 37 million dollars from forex markets in April 2009 in the first full month after ‘floating’ the rupee ahead of an International Monetary Fund bailout, the latest official data shows. The rupee depreciated despite a collapsing import bill. Sri Lanka’s central bank has also […]
‘s private sector must lead post-war revival: UNDP
May 10, 2009 (LBO) – Re-building Sri Lanka’s war-ravaged north and east should be eventually driven by the private sector, rather than an unsustainable donor-financed state sector, a senior United Nations Development Agency (UNDP) official said. Douglas Keh, head of UNDP in Sri Lanka, also said good governance and a government commitment to devolving adequate […]
Global economic recovery may be W shaped: Steve Hanke
May 08, 2009 (LBO) – Recent rallies in stock markets may be short-lived, and a ‘W’ patterned economic revival is more likely if the Fed fails to quell an expected inflation bout early, a top monetary economist has warned. “I believe we are headed for a W-shaped recovery, with a down-up-down pattern,” Steve Hanke, professor […]
Sri Lankan stocks end the week up, rupee strengthens
May 07, 2009 (LBO) – Sri Lankan shares closed flat Thursday but gained 2.86 percent during a short week propelled by institutional and high net worth investors, while the rupee strengthened against the US dollar amidst weak import demand, brokers and dealers said. The spot dollar was trading at 117. 00/25 levels by mid afternoon […]
Sri Lanka rupee at right level: CB Governor
May 07, 2009 (LBO) – The rupee is at the right level, central bank governor Nivard Cabraal said as the local currency floated between 116.50 to 117.70 rupees against the US dollar in spot trade Thursday. Sri Lanka has asked for a 1.9 billion US dollar loan from the International Monetary Fund which reports said […]
Sri Lanka rupee peaks at 116.50 in volatile trade
May 07, 2009 (LBO) – The Sri Lanka rupee peaked at 116.50 in intra-day trading against the US dollar, Thursday before weakening to 117.70/90 levels, as state bank buying returned to the market, dealers said.The rupee gained steeply with foreign banks on the sell side in morning trade and a state bank bought at 116.60 […]
Sri Lanka set to submit seabed claim
May 06, 2009 (LBO) – Sri Lanka is set to formally submit its claim for sovereignty over a bigger area of the ocean floor surrounding the island under international law, officials said. “The survey confirmed the assumptions made by Sri Lanka’s Law of the Sea delegation in 1970s and 1980s regarding the location of 1km […]