Dear Editor, During the past few months, I have observed criticism, mainly by the Opposition Parliamentarians, about the manner in which the Sri Lankan economy has been managed. In my view, their attempts seem to be designed to impose blame on the Governor, Central Bank, perhaps to weaken his resolve and strength and discourage him. ...

With the influx of tourists into the country, the Sri Lanka Association of Inbound Tour Operators (SLAITO) on Monday announced the successful completion of a ‘safety assessment’ of the most frequented tourist sites in Sri Lanka carried out by TUI Travel PLC Head of Specialist in Activity Health and Safety Malcolm Ellis. Commissioned in a ...

CB asks banks overnight for their forex commitments for Thursday and Friday; steps up bank visits Convenes meeting with treasury heads of banks; rupee crisis figures in monthly CB-bank CEOs meeting as well Dealers say no room for speculation given the very narrow net open positions; new rules apart from lack of dollars could be ...

Peradeniya Uni's Dr. Perera says exchange volatility is temporary and acceptable IMF's Mathai says no crisis but stability measures taken By Cheranka Mendis UNP MP Dr. Harsha de Silva yesterday made a compelling case that the ‘feel good’ party that the President Mahinda Rajapaksa Government tried to propagate among the people post-war was over, warning ...

Less than a year after starting up on its own, the company prepares to replicate its Indian success in Sri LankaJubilant FoodWorks, the master franchisee of Dominos Pizza for South Asia, last year set up its own subsidiary company in Sri Lanka, moving away from the franchisee partnership which held the fort for the Group ...

By Cheranka Mendis Glaxo SmithKline yesterday opened its latest state-of-the-art pharmaceutical tablet manufacturing facility in Moratuwa, built at an investment of Rs. 217 million. Confirming its commitment towards strengthening its footprint in Sri Lanka, the facility is part of a Rs. 1.4 billion investment that the company will put forward this year in the area ...

With the strategic move of Sri Lanka Ports Authority (SLPA) to receive all vehicle carriers at Magamruhunupura Mahinda Rajapaksa Port – Hambantota commencing from 31st May 2012, Hellmann Worldwide Logistics through its global vertical – ‘Hellmann Automotive Logistics (HAL) is fully geared to facilitate  the logistics requirements of all vehicle importers including formalitie...

Although relatively unknown in Sri Lanka, the world’s third largest advertising holding company, the Publicis Groupe, has a formidable presence worldwide and is represented in Sri Lanka by one of its main global subsidiaries, Leo Burnett. With Sri Lanka showing potential for high growth in the years to come, the second-in-command of the French multinational ...

The Sambhashana discussion organised by Transparency International Sri Lanka will focus on ‘The Rupee Crisis’ on 25 April at the auditorium of the Organisation of Professional Associations (OPA), Stanley Wijesundara Mawatha, off Bauddhaloka Mawatha Colombo 7 from 4 to 6 p.m. MP Dr. Harsha de Silva, Senior Lecturer of University of Peradeniya Dr. Prasanna Perera ...

Confirming Daily FT’s article last Wednesday, Seylan Bank on Friday announced the appointment of Mohan Pieris as its new Chairman and said the former Attorney General will further strengthen the Bank’s Board. “With his exposure in the spheres of Banking, Finance and Commerce

Clarifies 2011 per capita GDP computation technically correct but given fall in Rupee’s value in 2012 Central Bank should have been honest with greater disclosure and putting data in context As per IMF staff report Net International Reserves in 2011 alarming low at $ 4 b; Net Open Position below $ 3 b; Short Term ...

UNP MP Dr. Harsha de Silva backs Daily FT columnist on per capita income data, claimsfigures too inflated and Govt. trying to mislead people and global stakeholders; CB getting more politicised By Uditha Jayasinghe Firing another salvo at the Central Bank, UNP MP and economist Dr. Harsha De Silva

Hemas Holdings Plc is confident that contributions and insights from its newest Director on the Board, R. Gopalakrishnan, a top executive from Tata Sons and formerly from Hindustan Unilever will help the local conglomerate’s growth via acquisitions as well as forays into the region. Hemas last week announced the appointment of Gopalakrishnan, Director of Tata ...

The Central Bank, in its latest Annual Report, has downgraded its growth forecast for 2012 from eight per cent to 7.2 per cent. This is due to a combination of adverse global developments and the negative effects of domestic policy misalignments. The contractionary measures introduced to address the imbalance in the trade account (i.e. to ...

The Daily FT article published yesterday that stated that a former AG was to be appointed as Chairman of Seylan Bank gave me some concern. This trend of appointing retired Government servants close to the administrations to top positions in the private sector is a clear indication of the Central

Importers secure increase in age limit for cars and commercial vehicles; higher duty to stay President Mahinda Rajapaksa yesterday stepped up the accelerator for re-conditioned vehicles agreeing to revise the recently imposed age limit rules at a meeting with importers. Responding to pleas by motorists as well as Vehicle Importers Association, the President has agreed ...

Many readers would have by now heard and read about the annual Oxford – Cambridge boat race over the weekend, where a spoiler sprang an underwater surprise and about an oar that broke. All this led to what I would term as a less than wholesome win awarded to Cambridge. Almost three weeks ago, I ...

The Daily FT on Thursday featured on page 1 a story based on some startling comments and allegations by UNP MP Dr. Harsha De Silva and young business leader Dilith Jayaweera. The headlines and the contents wouldn’t have been a good read for President Mahinda Rajapaksa

World famous Olivia Newton John last night produced a stellar performance in her first live concert in Colombo at Musaeus College Auditorium. Internationally-acclaimed multiple Grammy award winner Olivia will be holding her second and final concert tonight. The shows are produced by Wizard Entertainment. She arrived on Tuesday night and was accorded a warm welcome ...

The CBSL’s directive issued last year, which takes into account credit, market, operational and liquidity risk, is very much in line with the recommendations of the Bank of International Settlements (BIS), which recommends in particular capital adequacy for government banks, said internationally-renowned risk consultant and CEO/Principal of Independent Global Research Ltd. David Roden. Addre...

GlaxoSmithKline, one of the top three global research based pharmaceutical companies operating in over 117 countries, is to invest a further $ 11.2 million (over Rs. 1.4 billion) in expanding its operations in Sri Lanka. The company will also shortly commission a new facility in Moratuwa for manufacturing their global brand Panadol. The investment on ...

By Cassandra Mascarenhas The latter part of the forum on insider trading titled ‘Insider Trading – Good, Bad or Ugly’ organised by the Institute of Chartered Corporate Secretaries of Sri Lanka and the Securities and Exchange Commission of Sri Lanka in partnership with the Daily FT

By Cheranka Mendis While Sri Lanka’s largest mega trade, investment and tourism promotion initiative ‘Expo 2012’ has been welcomed by stakeholders as a timely affair, stallholders shared mixed feelings on the order of the show. Some were elated having received inquires just two days into the event, while others expressed disappointment with regard to the ...

By Cassandra Mascarenhas Bringing to the spotlight an issue that has plagued the Sri Lankan stock market over the past several months, the Institute of Chartered Corporate Secretaries of Sri Lanka and the Securities and Exchange Commission of Sri Lanka in partnership with the Daily FT

By Cassandra Mascarenhas Newly appointed Chairman Tilak Karunaratne yesterday emphasised that the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) will not turn a blind eye to robbers invading the Bourse and promised stringent action against those engaged in insider dealing and manipulation. Speaking for the first time at a public forum since assuming duties, Karunaratne told the ...

EDB says 1,350 visitors from 55 countries already registered; flow halted due to lack of rooms The first-ever international style exhibition to promote exports in 18 years, Sri Lanka Expo 2012, which kicks off on Wednesday, has drawn 1,350 visitors from 55 countries with further demand facing a snag due to unavailability of hotel accommodation. ...

By Uditha Jayasinghe Showcasing the need for vigilance, over 1,500 foreigners who remained illegally in the country after their visas expired were detected within the first two months of 2012, a top immigration official said yesterday. Controller General of Immigration and Emigration Commissioner for Registration of Persons of Indian Origin W. Perera told the Daily ...

For a change, there is good news from Sri Lanka Cricket with the new administration led by Upali Dharmadasa succeeding in achieving record ticket sales worth over Rs. 80 million so far for the two Test matches with the visiting England team. “The amount raised so far is a record,” Tour Organising Committee Chairman Asanga ...

Suren Rajanathan is Vice President of 3M Sri Lanka, an innovation-based company which boasts a catalog of over 1,000 products sold in Sri Lanka that span 25 different business categories. 3M has an income internationally of $30 billion in sales, employs about 84,000 people worldwide, and has operations in more than 65 countries with products ...

and Exchange Commission (SEC) in partnership with the Daily FT. Dissanaike will ...