Category: Industry
Zenith
February, 22 (LBO) – After growing at breakneck speed for the past several years, Sri Lanka’s mobile phone market is losing pace and competitors are pecking away at dominant player Dialog’s market share, an equities research report has said. In 2006 Sri Lanka’s mobile penetration hit 27.1 percent according to official Telecommunications Regulatory Commission data. […]
Smart Buildings
February 21 (LBO) – Following the rapid spread of urbanization in Sri Lanka, local architects say more efficient and economical design methods must be adopted. In the field of architecture in Sri Lanka, there has not been any serious deliberation on sustainability, says Chandana Edirisuriya, Vice President Sri Lanka Institute of Architects (SLIA). In South […]
Mutual Benefits
February 22 (LBO) – A tax-efficient closed-end fixed income mutual fund launched by National Asset Management (NAMAL) is already attracting commitments from the corporate sector, officials said. But monetary policy has been tightened since December, sending market interest rates shooting up. The NAMAL Flexi Income Fund will invest mostly in better yielding corporate bonds and […]
Rolling Stock
February 22 (LBO) – The government of Sri Lanka hopes to purchase 100 train carriages from China to develop the island’s dilapidated railway network, officials said Thursday. The carriages will be purchased from China National Machinery Import and Export Corporation, Anura Yapa, Sri Lanka’s information minister said. Sri Lanka’s railway network was built by British […]
Sri Lanka at best ever for World Cup: de Silva
COLOMBO, Feb 22, 2007 (AFP) – Former batting great Aravinda de Silva believes the current Sri Lankan side go into the World Cup with better chances of winning the title than their champion 1996 team. “I honestly feel this side have a better chance than we had in 1996.When you compare the eras, I feel […]
Shelter
February 21 (LBO) – The World Bank is helping tens of thousands Muslim victims of Tamil Tiger ‘ethnic cleansing’ who were driven out of the northern Jaffna peninsular, to build their own homes through a new project approved this week. Recent fighting in eastern Sri Lanka has created new refugees, but some have started to […]
Sad End
TYRE, Lebanon, Feb 21, 2007 (AFP) – The body of a Sri Lankan housemaid, missing since Israeli missiles struck the building where she worked during last summer’s war in Lebanon, was found Wednesday, police said.The body of the 35-year-old woman, whose name was not given, was found on the seventh floor of the building in […]
Housing Billion
February, 21 (LBO) – HDFC Bank, Sri Lanka’s largest mortgage lender, is to raise one billion rupees in 10-year funds through a mortgage securitization issue to fund their growing housing loan book, an official said.At the end of September 2006, the bank had 8.5 billion rupees of performing advances and assets of 10.2 billion rupees. […]
Upper Limits
February 20 (LBO) – Sri Lanka’s Central Bank on Tuesday revised the requirements on single borrower limits to promote better risk management of banks. The new regulations allow individuals or single entities the ability to borrow up to 30 percent of the capital base of the bank. The single borrower limit goes up to 33 […]
Insurance Appetite
February 20 (LBO) – One of Sri Lanka’s youngest listed insurance firms, HNB Assurance closed up 8 percent Tuesday after declaring a one-for-two bonus issue following a 51 percent surge in profits for 2006. HNB Assurance closed up 2.50 rupees at 33.50 after peaking at 37 after the bonus announcement. A subsidiary of Hatton National […]
Native Feel
February 20 (LBO) – Microsoft’s new Vista operating system, which comes with built in Sinhala language capability would open a high technology window for rural Sri Lankans, officials said. “The main objective of having Sinhala language in our own operating system is to enable people to interact with the computer,” says Imran Vilcassim, a Microsoft […]
Smooth Talking
COLOMBO, Feb 20, 2007 (AFP) – Sri Lanka’s telecom sector soared in 2006 to 7.3 million users, led by a 59 percent jump in new mobile phone connections on competition and falling call rates, the telecom watchdog said Tuesday. Despite a waiting list of around 366,000 for fixed-line phone services, the Sri Lanka Telecommunications Regulatory […]