Sri Lanka has decided to keep its key policy rates unchanged despite the Bank’s expectation of further slowing down of inflation during the rest of the year. Accordingly, the Central Bank will maintain its Repurchase Rate and the Reverse Repurchase rate respectively at 7.00 per cent and 8.50 per cent, while the SRR will be at ...

Sri Lanka Seals supported the recently concluded first South Asian Beach Games in Hambantota as an event sponsor for the water sports events. Sri Lanka Seals was seen launching the Sea Jet Suzuki 1400CC Jet Skis in the high waters of Hambantota for pilot, rescue, media and support operations. The four stroke engines with a ...

The last week was an eventful week indeed. We barely recovered from the news of the death of the maverick inventor Steve Jobs. Although I am a loyal Microsoft right-brain person, I admired the ‘left-brain innovative spirit’ of Apple and the ingenuity of the man. He had not gone to university and had what some ...

The adage ‘there is no smoke without fire’ appears to be a perfect fit to Monday’s mega deal of EPF buying an 8% stake in Laugfs Holdings Plc for Rs. 1.6 billion, given its timing and the price paid. The Employees Provident Fund (EPF), which is heading towards a fund base of Rs. 1 trillion, ...

Economic Development Minister Basil Rajapaksa yesterday inaugurated the country’s largest ultra modern fuel station and shopping complex in Paradise, Kuruwita along the Colombo-Ratnapura road. This trade complex includes a fuel station, a Commercial Bank branch, ATM machines, a restaurant

I like to be an optimist. No matter what may happen around us, I would like to retain feelings of hope I have for all human-kind and on a more intimate level for you, for me, the newborn and the to-be-born. Yet, what has already happened around me, happening now and may happen in the ...

Sir Richard Branson and American actor and environmental campaigner, Edward Norton, are among the pantheon of global environmental leaders who are set to speak at the third annual Six Senses Slow Life Symposium, to be held at Soneva Fushi in the Maldives. The conference will run over four days between 6-9 October 2011 and will ...

Reuters: TUI Travel, Europe’s biggest tour operator, is on track to meet full-year profit expectations due to strong late summer bookings although it has yet to see a revival in demand for holidays in Egypt and Tunisia, its CEO said. “We are anticipating a slow recovery in trading to Egypt and Tunisia and have managed ...

With the World Bank announcing that the world economy is teetering on “a new danger zone,” it is of paramount importance for governments and financial power-houses to restore confidence through concrete policies and systematic financial planning. This is the order of the day, given the recent pessimistic report on the world economy delivered by Morgan ...

By Devin Jayasundera A top Finance Ministry official last week declared that the country’s import sector has bright opportunities on to the future in tandem with fast growing economy and per capita income of the people. Delivering the keynote address at the Ceylon Chamber Import Section Annual General Meeting the Ministry of Finance and Planning ...

Recently rebranded Divasa Finance Limited has opened its first branch since receiving its finance company licence in the bustling town of Kalutara. The branch is located at No. 697/2, Kalutara South, Kalutara. The branch was declared open by the Chairman of the Kalutara Urban Council M. N. M. Jauffer amidst a gathering of the chairman ...

After two decades, Hilton Colombo owning company Hotel Developers finally releases accounts Accumulated losses by end FY 2009/2010 top Rs. 10 billion Revaluation of hotel results in Rs. 4.7 b gain yet company beset with negative networth of Rs. 4.7 b as against Rs. 8.26 b in 2008/9 Total outstanding loans and borrowings near Rs ...

Royal Jordanian (RJ), the national airline of Jordan, logged a record 373,000 passengers aboard its aircraft in July, marking a 13.3 per cent rise over the same month last year and resulting in net profit reaching JD5 million ($7 million). RJ President and CEO Hussein Dabbas said that the passenger number is the highest registered ...

The Emirates Group has announced the release of its first comprehensive environmental report, a study that revealed the airline’s carbon dioxide emissions efficiency was 26% better than the global airline average. Covering the 2010-2011 fiscal year, the audited report analysed environmental performance data from a range of Group activities, including airline operations, dnata’s cargo a...

BRASILIA, March 7 (BERNAMA-NNN-PRENSA LATINA) -- Brazil and Sri Lanka have discussed important aspects of their bilateral links chiefly technical cooperation in agriculture, bio-fuel, and tourism.

By Abdul H. Azeez – Photos by Lalith Perera The smoky haze that seems to have taken up residence over the tarmac of the Ratmalana Airport slowly dissipates as the little nine seater I am sitting in leaves the ground. Our pilot had to keep the engine running in order to get the AC working ...

By Lewie Diasz* Marketing’s forefathers Theodore Levitt and Phillip Kotler defined marketing in an era where baby boomers and generation X prevailed and marketing has evolved ever since and the evolution can be classified into different eras. The evolution begins from a hunter-gatherer orientation to agriculture orientation and then the early 1900s where demand exceeded ...

By Ashwin Hemmathagama Skyline Aviation (Pvt) Ltd. Flying Training Academy was established in April 2006 by a group of entrepreneurs and professional aviators who had a passion for flying. The main aim of the company was to infuse that same passion into new recruits, and training them to become professional and world-class pilots. Following are ...

Plans are underway to import fuel and gas directly from Oman. The agreement on the purchase of oil was reached during a meeting between the Omani President in Sri Lanka Ali Almani and Minister Susil Premajayantha. The meeting took place at the Ministry of Petroleum Industries. Attention was drawn

By K. Ratnayake Sri Lankan President Mahinda Rajapakse’s trip to New York and speech at the UN General Assembly last week had two main purposes: to cover up for war crimes committed during the country’s civil war and to appeal...

The Government has stressed that this budget is essential for the development of the country that has been liberated. Minister Dinesh Gunawardena opening the budget debate this morning on behalf of the Government said the North and East are now being added as areas that contribute to the national economy. Sri Lanka is no longer ...

By Faraz Shauketaly Minister of Fisheries, Dr. Rajitha Senaratne is a colourful politician who made a name for himself with his powerful oratory and performances in public agitation platforms. He played a key role in the crossover phenomenon when a large number of UNP members crossed over and joined President Rajapaksa. Recently appointed as Minister ...