The country has lost several hundred thousand jobs to Covid-19. The impact of the agrochemical ban on agriculture, the mismanagement of the exchange rate, a highly accommodative monetary policy, and the use of foreign exchange reserves for debt repayment thwarted the country’s ability to recover from the initial shock of COVID-19, an ILO study titled, […]

The ‘atingi’ eAcademy is a digital learning platform, providing users with the opportunity to develop their knowledge in the tourism and hospitality sector. Introduced by Deutsche Gesellschaft für Internationale Zusammenarbeit (GIZ) GmbH, the e-learning platform caters to anyone interested in upskilling their knowledge on tourism and hospitality-related topics including line staff, management prof...

By Krishantha Prasad Cooray In many ways, the economic collapse of Sri Lanka became a near certainty in the weeks after Gotabaya Rajapaksa was elected President. In hindsight, it is clear to all that his government’s number one priority was consolidating their power and punishing those it saw as its enemies. Their next priority was […]

Shares have been on the rise mainly on positive sentiment after the IMF comments.

Market sees over 600 million rupees of net foreign inflow

We can make the Mannar Island like entertainment location like Macau island

For the first time in parliamentary history, the Central Bank of Sri Lanka has issued a dire warning to Parliament and political parties therein over the responsibility on their part to ensure financial stability and discipline. Their failure to do so would trigger public protests again, they were told. There hadn’t been such a public […]

Imports fall as financial account inflows dry up

By Shamindra Ferdinando The Sri Lanka Institute of Directors (SLID) and Transparency International Sri Lanka (TISL) recently declared corruption as the root cause of Sri Lanka’s current political and economic crisis. The declaration was made in a statement titled, “SLID and TISL launch ‘Business Against Corruption’ Initiative” issued to the media after the two organisations […]

He said inflation may peak around September below 70 percent before showing a downward trend.

ECONOMYNEXT – Sri Lanka’s central bank said it was holding its policy rates at 15.50 percent, while data showed market interest rates are close to twice the rate and private credit and imports falling. Monetary Policy Review: No. 06 – August 2022The Central Bank of Sri Lanka maintains policy interest rates at their current levelsThe Monetary Board of the Central Bank of Sri Lanka...

Electricity prices were last hiked in 2013 however were slashed almost by 25% in 2014

President Gotabaya Rajapaksa’s two years in office – a period of unprecedented political turmoil, uncertainty and further deterioration of Parliament – should be thoroughly examined. In fact, the UNP, with the support of the then President Maithripala Sirisena, paved the way for Gotabaya Rajapaksa’s candidature, at the 2019 presidential election, by blocking Mahinda Rajapaksa’s path […...

After the collapse of the Sri Lankan economy, attention has turned to the state of affairs in other South Asian countries such as Pakistan, Bhutan and Bangladesh. All three countries have either curtailed imports or are planning to do so, to salvage their fast-depleting foreign exchange reserves

by Chandre Dharmawardana, chandre.dharma@yahoo.ca. The forex crisis had forced the government to jettison its initial set of economic managers of the Central bank who looked for home-grown solutions and opposed dealing with the International Monetary Fund (IMF). The President re-instated a set of managers whose ideas were more orthodox and aligned with the neo-liberal bankers […]

By Anupama Rajput Sri Lankan Lawmakers voted in acting President Ranil Wickremsinghe as the new President on July 20. The six-time Prime Minister was able to garner 134 votes in the 225-member parliament, despite public anger with the ruling elite in the hope that his long experience in government could help pull the country out […]

"Because we have a threat of risk to the banks as well."

By Anjana Pasricha NEW DELHI —  In Colombo, Sri Lanka’s capital, a sprawling port city showcased as a financial hub to rival Dubai is being set up on 269 hectares of land dredged from the sea. It is the latest of the huge Chinese-funded infrastructure projects in the island country that include a port and […]

Monetary meltdown worsens as money printed to keep rates down and pay state worker salaries