Victims of the Shangri-La blast
The worried and tearful looks on the faces of this tourist couple, seated in the hotel lobby minutes after the blast at the Shangri-La hotel, reflects the long-term crisis facing tourism and the economy at large. Pic by Amila Gamage.
Easter Sunday terror:
Besides the loss of 253 lives and injuries to over 500 people along with emotional trauma among affected family members and others, the Easter Sunday terror attack is set to lead Sri Lanka towards a deep economic abyss. These suicide bomb attacks on three churches and luxury hotels in Colombo and the outstations would deal [...]
Tourism industry braces for tough times
The tourism industry in Sri Lanka was caught unawares on Easter Sunday morning when blasts ripped through churches and hotels, sending the industry back to an era of armed sentries posted around the city and outside. This is the first time that tourists and hotels were a target by terrorists in Sri Lanka. Forty tourists [...]
Businesses will fight back
The recent inhuman terror attacks have crippled all types of businesses with owners and managements of these institutions uncertain about the immediate future, but vowing to fight back. For starters, some of them will be meeting state authorities to devise action plans for the way forward. This will be done through the chambers who will [...]
Foreigners see value in Colombo stocks
Colombo shares saw foreigners on a buying spree on two days this week, despite the bad sentiment after Easter Sunday attacks with analysts saying that foreign buyers see the value in purchasing blue chips at this time. Wednesday and Thursday foreigners were net buyers. Wednesday saw Rs. 1.3 billion net buying followed by Thursday’s Rs. [...]
Sri Lanka’s public sector vehicle expense rises dramatically
At a time when the public finances of the government is facing challenges on many fronts, Sri Lanka’s capital expenditure for the procurement of vehicles for public sector institutions has increased dramatically during the past two years, an official report revealed. According to available official data, while the outlay for public vehicle acquisition was about [...]
Amidst the rubble: Moving forward
There were sombre thoughts and an air of melancholy in the household, and also the neighbourhood. Kussi Amma Sera (KAS) and her friends had returned from the village after their extended Avurudu vacation, sad on one side but eager to find out what was happening in Colombo after the Easter Sunday carnage. “Mahattaya, megollo vanachara [...]
Liberalisation and “security lapses”
I was hoping to bring about a different issue, but at the last moment I thought of changing the direction. Last Sunday, a wave of blasts shook the nation that had been enjoying 10 years of peace in the island. It was only after Sunday’s incidence that everyone realised what had been nurtured behind peace. [...]
Jetwing Hotels Chairman issues heart-warming message after the Easter Sunday tragedy
Shiromal Cooray, Chairman and Managing Director – Jetwing Travels (Pvt) Ltd and Chairman – Jetwing Hotels Ltd, on Monday sent out a heart-warming message of concern and comfort to the group’s partners and friends after the Easter Sunday tragedy, and also focusing on tragedies experienced within the Jetwing family itself. “You have been with us [...]
Kelani Cables employees recognised with CEO’s Awards for Sales Excellence
Kelani Cables PLC, that produces Sri Lanka’s top electrical and communication cables, honoured its outstanding sales persons with the CEO’s Award for the sixth consecutive year at the Water’s Edge with the participation of Mahinda Saranapala, Director/CEO, Kelani Cables PLC. Roshan de Silva was adjudged the ‘Best Ares Sales Manager’. Shanaka Athukorala was conferred with [...]
Sri Lanka’s business community condemns attacks, urges calm, unity
An outpouring of grief, anger and bitterness tinged with a call for calm, unity and peace was evident this week as several business chambers and associations expressed their views and concern in the aftermath of probably, Sri Lanka’s worst single-most terrorist attack. Several chambers of commerce, including Sri Lanka’s main Ceylon Chamber of Commerce, in [...]
Browns Hospitals to offer NITF members access to healthcare services
Browns Hospitals, recently signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) with the National Insurance Trust Fund (NITF) which provides NITF’s 2.5 million members and their families access to Browns Hospitals’ state-of-the-art facilities and services at a concessionary rate. The MoU was signed by Sanath C. De Silva – Chief Executive Officer, NITF, and Charitha Jayasingha – [...]
Sri Lankan Tourism to roll out new security plan for hotels, resorts
Sri Lanka Tourism (SLT) on Tuesday reassured the world that the country is open for business and all possible measures have been taken to ensure the safety and security of tourists while a new security plan for hotels and resorts will be soon rolled out. “Our world famous tourism sites, hotels, resorts and other tourist [...]
Restoration of confidence and regaining credibility paramount
There is a compelling need for a robust intelligence and security infrastructure to address the safety and security of our people and domestic investors whose resilience has sustained this economy and the incomes and employment of our people during war and peace. Sustaining our export driven and dependent economy necessarily requires a restoration of confidence [...]
IMF calls for crucial policy and security actions to shield the economy
While expressing shock and sorrow on the horrific terror attacks in Sri Lanka, the International Monetary Fund (IMF) called for crucial policy and security measures by the authority’s towards the country’s economic stability specially to shore up tourism. Tourism which accounts for 5 per cent of GDP needs to be re-invigorated to build on the [...]
World Bank supports climate resilient agriculture and infrastructure services in Sri Lanka
WASHINGTON — Sri Lanka and the World Bank last week signed two new agreements worth US$150 million in Washington to improve climate resilience and agriculture productivity for small farmers and support priority infrastructure through public-private partnerships. Hartwig Schafer, World Bank Vice President for the South Asia Region and Dr. R.H.S. Samaratunga, Secretary, Ministry of Finance [...]
Inflation rises in March
Sri Lanka’s headline inflation, measured by the year-on-year change in the National Consumer Price Index (NCPI), increased to 2.9 per cent last month from 2.4 per cent in February mainly due to the low base prevailed in the corresponding month of the previous year. The March year-on-year Food and Non-food inflation recorded -2.3 per cent [...]
Sri Lanka, soft target for cyber criminals, says Microsoft
As the country embarks on ambitious tech projects, more companies are likely to be exposed to attacks than the global average. Even as businesses capitalise on the latest security intelligence and protections to stay ahead in the evolving cyber security landscape, Sri Lanka continues to be an attractive region for cyber criminals according to Microsoft. [...]
Seylan Bank’s Rs. 5 bn debenture issue oversubscribed
Seylan Bank’s Rs. 5 billion Debenture Issue opened on April 9 2019 and the first tranche of Rs. 3 billion was successfully oversubscribed on the opening day, reflecting a strong investor confidence in Seylan. The bank said in a statement that it kept the Issue opened for one more day for the second and final [...]
‘BOMBS IN TOWN’ – 5 Lessons
In February 2010, this is what I stated in my risk column for the Business Times: “Defeating of terrorism in Sri Lanka should never be a logical or practical rationale for relaxation of our precautions – locally or globally. The terror against localities is no longer launched only by naïve, low tech, amateurish, rough- faced, [...]
Sri Lanka can ‘no longer’ postpone economic reforms:CB 2018 report
Sri Lanka can no longer afford to postpone its reforms agenda, if it is to progress along a high and sustainable growth trajectory over the medium term and catch up with countries that were behind Sri Lanka several decades ago, the Central Bank said in its 2018 annual report released on Thursday. Stating that real [...]
Sri Lanka’s Hambantota Port positioned as region’s Bunkering Hub
The Hambantota International Port (HIP) recently awarded a tender to Sinopec Fuel Oil Sales Co Ltd for oil trading works and the operation and maintenance of their oil tank terminal along with associated facilities. Bunkering being an important part of the marine services portfolio offered by HIP, the oil tank terminal in partnership with Sinopec [...]
DIMO’s ‘Life to Reef’ project restores corals and rejuvenates livelihoods
Diesel and Motor Engineering PLC (DIMO), has embarked on ‘Life to Reef’, a key sustainability project aimed at protecting and restoring the beautiful coral reefs in the Bonavista Reef at Rumassala near Galle. DIMO is proactively involved in replenishing and restoring corals which are rapidly becoming an endangered variety of marine species. The latter initiatives [...]
Hayleys Energy Services, Hambantota International Port Group in largest oil field production asset to come to Sri Lanka
Hayleys Energy Services (HES), the pioneer in Oil and Gas support services in Sri Lanka, last week ushered in the first floating production storage and offloading (FPSO) asset to ever call Sri Lanka, in collaboration with the Hambantota International Port Group (HIPG). The FPSO asset – Dhirubhai-1, is expected to be docked at the Hambantota [...]
SLT, University of Moratuwa to carry out collaborative research
Sri Lanka Telecom (SLT), the national ICT and digital services provider recently signed an agreement with the University of Moratuwa, to carry out collaborative research in the areas of electrical, electronics and telecommunication that is anticipated to have major scientific, technological and economic impacts on the entire island. The MoU between SLT and the university [...]
CFL says invest EPF funds with transparency
The Ceylon Federation of Labour (CFL), a well-established trade union, has raised its opposition against only unions of the National Labour Advisory Council (NLAC) being consulted on the way forward in the proposed investments by the Employees Provident Fund (EPF) in the Colombo stock market. “In our opinion, the unions in the NLAC have no [...]
Ceylinco General Insurance pays advance of $1 m to Shangri-La Hotel Colombo
Ceylinco General Insurance in collaboration with Chubb Insurance of USA paid an advance of US$1 million to Shangri-La Hotel Colombo on Thursday April 25, just four days after the devastating bomb on Easter Sunday, to commence repairs. Officials of Ceylinco General Insurance visited Shangri-La within a few hours of Sunday’s incident and got in touch [...]
Bomb-affected Cinnamon Grand accepts new bookings
Bomb-affected Cinnamon Grand, Colombo has commenced taking new bookings from April 22 onwards and all its restaurants – excluding those in the affected area on the lower ground floor at the rear of the hotel, will open to the public from April 30 (Tuesday). All prior bookings for banquets and rooms continue as planned,” John [...]