The entry in to Sri Lanka by Malaysia’s sovereign wealth fund Khazanah Nasional Berhad via John Keells Holdings (JKH) is being hailed as a all round boost for the country, the Colombo stock market as well as the premier blue chip. JKH which has many first to its credit is also the first stock on ...

The Employees Provident Fund gets a profit of 800 million rupees.   The Employees Provident Fund which possessed 71 million shares of conglomerate John Keells Holdings had been sold at 194 rupees per share, bringing a capital gain to the Fund. These shares have been purchased by Malaysia’s Khazana Nasional Berhard, a sovereign wealth Fund. ...

SLIC books hefty Rs. 4 b capital gain as an eager Harry secures large block; Ups control to 40.8%; Melstacorp to revise Spence mandatory offer price to Rs. 115 per share from Rs. 113 Business tycoon Harry Jayawardena-linked Melstacorp Ltd. yesterday acquired a strategic block of an 11% stake in Aitken Spence Plc for Rs. ...

Locals may be having fears of the Geneva outcome but the very investors from the West are continuing to be bullish with net inflow topping the Rs. 3 billion mark by yesterday. Foreigners were net buyers to the tune of Rs. 224 million increasing the net inflow under just two months of the year to ...

Benito Mussolini, the fascist ruler of Italy, during World War II, said that his brand of fascism ‘should be more appropriately called Corporatism, because it is a merger of state and corporate power’. Compare this with the dictionary definition of capitalism: ‘A system in which a country’s business and industry are controlled and run for ...

The Colombo Bourse last week saw a net foreign inflow of Rs. 1.2 billion, with Aitken Spence Plc drawing the most buying, whilst brokers expect the non-national interest to grow further. Spence saw net foreign shareholding increase by 4.8 million shares or 1% last week, whilst overall nearly five million of its shares traded for ...

Contrary to exaggerated claims the EPF investments in to the stock market last week had amounted to only less than 10% of market activity and unlike some past contentious buys, this time around it had focused on blue chips. The total turnover of the Colombo bourse last week was Rs. 8.6 billion

ASI gains by 5% as Bourse’s value swells by Rs. 96 b Brokers positive after fresh meeting with SEC EPF, private institutional and high networth investors active on attractive valuations The Colombo stock market yesterday produced a major rebound gaining by 5% thanks what some described

The Sri Lankan economy is dragged out – the country is over-borrowing, underperforming and leading into a debt crunch, claims United National Party Colombo District Parliamentarian Ravi Karunanayake. Karunanayake accuses the Rajapaksa administration of damaging the country’s social fabric, which he says is Sri Lanka’s biggest asset. Following are excerpts of an interview: Q: What...

‘A ruler with a depleted treasury eats into the very vitality of the citizens and the country. A ruler, who impoverishes his own people or angers them by unjust exactions will also lose their loyalty Impoverishment, greed and dissatisfaction are engendered among the subjects, when the ruler among other things (i) fails to give what ought ...

Last week there were more stories making the rounds on contemplated decisions made outside the cabinet meeting than decisions made inside. Of course, the usual briefing on cabinet decisions were spelled out, Thursday afternoon. For a regime that still wants to boast it has popular support, comparing itself to an opposition fractured and quarrelling red and green, it is ...

If the Governor of Central Bank has an urge to enter politics, he should come to Parliament without playing politics inside the CB, charges United National Party Parliamentarian and well-known Economist Dr. Harsha de Silva. Dr. de Silva notes that Governor Nivard Cabraal should respect the sanctity of the Central Bank and therefore if Cabraal ...

Fitch Ratings has affirmed Sri Lanka’s Housing Development Finance Corporation Bank’s National Long-Term rating at ‘BBB+(lka)’. The “Outlook” Fitch says is Stable. At the same time, the agency has affirmed the bank’s outstanding senior unsecured redeemable debentures at ‘BBB+(lka)’. The ratings reflect HDFC’s demonstrated ability to contain interest rate risk b...

The Pathfinder Foundation with the assistance of Volunteers for Economic Growth Alliance (VEGA) and USAID, recently commissioned a study to identify the policy and regulatory reforms that are required to make Sri Lanka a leading country in investor friendliness. Improving the business climate is not an end in itself. A better business environment is a ...

Market’s illiquid state compounded by seasonal demand for money, coupled with the lack of confidence in the establishment that is also driving demand for US dollars ($s) and rates as well, forced Central Bank of Sri Lanka (CBSL) to hold a reverse repo auction on Friday (December 16) to tide over the situation Overnight (O/n) ...

From early in-house management training to training in world class management schools that professionals, business leaders, academics and civil society leaders have undergone, they have learnt of the key management principle of engaging in quiet reflection, reality checks, risk mitigation assessments and the need to plan lessons learnt response action. These practices are considered essential ...

By Ian The President in his speech at the opening of the Southern Expressway said that this could be the beginning of building a modern society. He also mentioned that had there been such an expressway linking the north with the south the extremists would not have succeeded in capitalising on the mistrust among communities. ...

Professionals stressed the importance of attracting foreign direct investment (FDI) into the country to usher in much needed development and also to help in foreign debt servicing and to take away pressure on interest rates. Former Central Bank of Sri Lanka Director Statistics Dr. (Mrs.) Anila Dias Bandaranaike speaking at a CIMA sponsored budget seminar ...

ASPI in steepest fall since February; fears over Takeover nBill force dumping of blue chips; EPF the lone ranger Investor confidence is worsening by the day judging by the continued tumble in value of the Colombo bourse, as it suffered one of the sharpest declines yesterday. The market

The UNP yesterday criticised the Board of Investment (BOI) for misleading investors by changing its web site's previous assurance that foreign investments will not be nationalised. An apparent development following the passing of Takeover Bill in parliament on Wednesday, in the BOI web site's section listing Supportive Government Policies, the new version only states "Safety ...

Dr. Lalith P. Chandradasa, a doctor of medicine and a brother-in-law of President Mahinda Rajapaksa, has been appointed to the Board of Directors of the pioneering development finance institution DFCC Bank. The appointment as an Independent Director had been approved by the DFCC Bank Board following the go ahead by the Director of Bank Supervision, ...

Commonwealth Games’ Bid The ethics of Government of Sri Lanka’s (GoSL’s) decision to request public banks to make a contribution to strengthen GoSL’s bid to hold the Commonwealth Games in Hambantota in 2018 are being questioned by certain quarters. One banker told this reporter that as banks are custodians of depositors’ funds, it’s not right ...

By Cheranka Mendis Central Bank Governor Nivard Cabraal yesterday declared that the country’s biggest fund, the EPF, was well managed and not corrupted, in remarks that signalled an apparent dismissal of allegations levelled by the main opposition UNP. Sri Lanka’s largest fund

Central Bank Governor Ajith Nivard Cabral has said that they had no intention of vesting the Employees Provident in another party. He was speaking at the relocation of the EPF Department at a new venue. The Employees Provident Fund Department has been relocated in the Lloyds Building at Sir Baron

aUNP MP and the party’s Economic Spokesman Dr. Harsha de Silva yesterday renewed his warning over the fate of EPF’s questionable investments in the stock market. In a statement, he urged that EPF must follow its own investment guidelines and code of professional conduct or else

By Harsha de Silva We understand that the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) is planning to compound undisclosed securities fraud by some billionaire investors. Media reports have begun to circulate that Environmental Resources Investments (ERI) and its Directors have agreed with the SEC to pay an insignificant fine of Rs. 10 million and compound an ...

More To Exit following UN Report The stock market continued to lose its momentum as predicted in the lead story on these pages in its last week’s edition, compounded by foreigners fleeing the market, made worse by the UN’s negative war report on the island. “There is panic selling by foreigners in the backdrop of ...

Banks’ Profits Up 111% The banking industry achieved a considerably high level of profits in 2010. Profit after tax amounted to Rs. 57.5 billion last year, a 111% growth in comparison to a Rs. 27.2 billion profit in 2009. The significant growth in profitability was mainly attributed to a higher increase in fee-based income, a ...

No Investments With the market throwing up an excess liquidity of more than Rs. 120 billion day, day in day out, and signs being that investments have not picked up, are all favourable indicators for the prevalence of a low interest regime in the economy, a market source told this reporter. The market has no ...

Excess Liquidity, Small Forex Market Excess liquidity coupled with low volumes of foreign exchange traded have been continuing to bug markets here, which a source attributed as being are reflection of the low levels of economic activity taking place in the country. Despite a spike last Friday, the foreign exchange (forex) market has been averaging ...