Reuters) – The head of the International Monetary Fund warned on Wednesday that Europe’s debt crisis risked plunging the global economy into a “lost decade” and said it was up to rich nations to shoulder the burden of restoring growth and confidence. Christine Lagarde told a financial forum in Beijing that European plans to bolster ...

The World Travel Market 2011 Industry Report released on Monday has included Sri Lanka among a group of countries which are second best for tourism in terms of attraction and growth whilst BRICs have been rated the best. The grouping carries the acronym SLIMMA with WTM experts choosing SL of Sri Lanka for it. Others ...

SUN FM presents Arash live in concert at the Excel World Open Air Arena on 9 December, keeping its promise of uplifting the quality of entertainment in Sri Lanka, and once again proving its prowess, by bringing down not just yet another star, but his entire seven-man band and his stunning female vocalist, Rebecca – ...

PCL Solutions won the Dealer of the Year 2010 award for its outstanding sales of medical waste incinerator, Mediburn, produced by Elastec American Marine. The international award was presented to PCL Solutions Health Care Sales Manager Sampath Kularatne, at an event in Illinois, USA. Being the sole agent in Sri Lanka, PCL Solutions secured the ...

Global business activity grew in October at the slowest rate since the end of the last global recession in August 2009, thanks to sagging output and new business, according to a new business survey. JPMorgan’s Global All-Industry Output index, a measure of global private sector activity, fell to 51.4 in October from 52 the previous ...

ST PETERSBURG, Russia, Nov 7 (Reuters) – Russia, holder of the world’s third largest foreign reserves, gave a vote of no confidence on Monday in Europe’s handling of its debt crisis as the head of the International Monetary Fund visited Moscow to seek support. Prime Minister

Four demining machines worth around Rs. 302 million were handed by the Russia Federation to Defence Secretary Gotabaya Rajapaksa this morning at the Ministry of Defence. Russian Ambassador in Sri Lanka Vladimir P. Mikhaylov and Army Commander Lieutenant General Jagath Jayasuriya

exporting countries by the likelihood of their firms to bribe abroad. Companies from Russia and China, ...

One of the world’s leading oil companies, Russia’s oil giant Gazprom will send a a group of technical specialists to Sri Lanka to explore gas drilling in the off the northwest coast of the country, government media reported. Gazprom has expressed its intention to join the gas drilling

We have to ensure that we develop sufficient spaces within our own economies so as to be able to comfortably face the inevitable complexities in the face of global challenges, President Mahinda Rajapaksa said. “In our view, individual policy interventions or ad-hoc measures which target just one or two outcomes are often flawed and almost ...

Amidst trying times for the tea industry, exports had crossed the US$ 1 billion mark faster this year than 2010 as overall performance remains mixed. Asiya Siyaka Research quoting Customs data said that Sri Lanka has earned approximately US$ 1.088 billion from exports during the first nine months of the year. This is said to ...

Reuters: New investors who have shown interest in Sri Lankan oil and gas exploration await the results of Cairn India’s drilling of a second well in the Mannar Basin before committing to anything, Sri Lanka’s Oil Minister said on Tuesday. Petroleum Industries Minister Susil Premajayantha confirmed that Russian gas export monopoly Gazprom, Malaysian State oil ...

U.S. presidential election all about the economy First bin Laden, now Iraq Obama shows he can answer the “3 a.m. call” WASHINGTON  (Reuters): President Barack Obama delivered on another foreign policy promise on Friday with plans to pull the last U.S. troops from Iraq. But in a re-election campaign all about the weak U.S. economy, ...

Following is the speech delivered by Deputy Minister of Technology and Research Faizer Mustapha at the SLIM Brand Excellence awards held early this week What better time than this to discuss your theme, ‘Impossible is Nothing’? We’ve done it! You may ask what I mean by this statement. We fought the ruthless LTTE and defeated ...

Reuters: Prime Minister Vladimir Putin laid out his case for a return to Russia’s top office in a televised interview on Monday, casting himself as the best guarantor of a bright future in a country haunted by upheaval in the recent past. Putin also offered hints of the foreign policy

Despite being a regional leader in enforcing standards, Sri Lanka still has a long way to go before reaping the full benefits of having its exports globally accepted. Studies have shown that a country can add as much as 1% to its GDP by proscribing to international standards. Daily FT met up with International Standards ...

Lankan participation at biggest food fair draws $ 2 m initials, suppliers already looking at 2013 showSri Lanka’s participation at the recently-concluded international ‘Anuga Trade Fair’ was a clear success, with most orders for Sri Lanka seen from European and Eastern European countries and European supermarket chains making direct inquiries on local products. Many Sri ...

The National Chamber of Commerce of Sri Lanka (NCCSL) will hold a seminar on ‘Bilateral Trade between Russia and Sri Lanka’ on Wednesday 19 October 2011 from 3 p.m. to 4:30 p.m. at the Chamber Auditorium, No. 450 D.R. Wijewardene Mw, and Colombo-10. Ambassador of Russia Vladimir

By Cheranka Mendis Sri Lanka’s tea industry has been battered and beaten by the weather gods this year and is now looking at lower production volumes and low auction prices despite early expectations of the year continuing the trend of 2010, which ended off as a record year for the industry. Colombo Tea Brokers’ Association ...

to resolve its own troubles without support from Russia and fellow BRICs countries. As ...

In business the most difficult part is finding, servicing and retaining markets and market share. In exports, this is even more challenging. The ultimate in value addition is brand marketing. The optimum return in global business is achieved by the growth and development of brands. The national economy where the brand is owned has a ...

“Russia and Sri Lanka enjoy gradual growth of bilateral trade. Tea Exports to Russia have always been robust and exciting; the time has come for us to seek more comprehensive efforts to widen our economic co-operation, beyond conventional economic means, in order to create

At this week’s Tea Auction conducted on 4 and 5 October, several All Time Colombo Tea Auction Record Prices were established for the Low Grown OP and OPA grades. All three record prices were established through the catalogue of Lanka Commodity Brokers Ltd., whilst the respective buyers for the OP and OPA grades were Inter ...

By Uditha Jayasinghe Brewed by external demand reductions and local policies, Sri Lanka’s value-added tea exports are declining while bulk shipments are increasing, resulting in a possible drop in earnings, industry experts warned yesterday.  Terming the reduction in value-added tea as a “disturbing trend,” Asia Siyaka Commodities said in a review report that Sri Lanka’...

In the latest figures available, the Pacific Asia Travel Association (PATA) last week reported that the preliminary figures for international visitor arrivals into Asia/Pacific destinations1 for July 2011 show a year-on-year increase of 7%. Director of the PATA Strategic Intelligence Centre John Koldowski PATA’s Strategic Intelligence Centre notes that the growth rate has become more ...

In the previous two ‘My Views,’ the following five popular fallacies of appreciating the exchange rate were discussed: Fallacy One: A Government can fix the exchange rate at any level it wishes. Fallacy Two: An appreciated exchange rate is a symbol of a country’s strength and prestige. Fallacy Three: The appreciation of the exchange rate ...

By Uditha Jayasinghe High on its recent UN success, Sri Lanka is already preparing for fresh contentions on human rights and political reconciliation issues at the next UN Human Rights Council General Meeting scheduled for March 2012, a top Government Minister said yesterday. Plantations Minister Mahinda Samarasinghe, who headed the special team to the UNHRC ...

WHEN one hurdle is cleared, another appears on the horizon. Sri Lanka’s recent success at the United Nations General Assembly and UNHRC sessions does not mean that its vulnerability for international intervention is over. This much was acknowledged by Plantations Minister Mahinda Samarasinghe who headed the Government team at the UNHRC. In fact the Sri ...

LONDON(Reuters): World stock markets will recover next year from a nightmarish 2011 that has wiped trillions of dollars off share prices, according to a Reuters poll that showed almost all major stock indexes ending 2011 in the red. Darkening economic prospects and fears the euro zone debt crisis will unravel into financial catastrophe sent global ...

Darshi Keertisena of Buddhi Batiks will showcase at the prestigious Russia Fashion Week, which is the largest fashion week of East Europe. This opportunity was part of the HSBC Colombo Fashion Week initiative. Moscow is one the biggest luxury markets in the world and it has a special