Bee honey
A customer dips into a bottle of bee honey produced and sold by Helayo Products at an exhibition of agriculture products at the BMICH on Friday organised by agriculture authorities. Pic by Indika Handuwala
Key officials in London for debt restructure talks
Sri Lanka is set to exchange its existing dollar bonds for new securities with the aim to mobilise further international financial assistance in the wake of ongoing talks between a steering committee of bondholders and a government team which began in London this week, Finance Ministry sources disclosed. The group of bond holders is expected [...]
New public procurement regulatory framework to deter corruption
A new public regulatory framework with clear transparency, accountability, and oversight rules will come into effect this year once the new legislation is passed in parliament aimed at limiting corruption opportunities and malpractices in the current public procurement process. The reports of the Ministry of Finance, the Auditor-General’s Department, and the Department of Management of [...]
Adani Green Energy’s wind power project undergoes technical review
Adani Green Energy’s US$442 million wind power project in Mannar and Pooneryn is undergoing a technical review of the Sri Lanka Sustainable Energy Authority (SLSEA) following Environmental Impact Assessment (EIA) public consultation process Several public complaints had been received relating to the impact on the Central Asian Flyway and migratory birds and marine life along [...]
SriLankan discontinuing flts to Beijing from next week
SriLankan Airlines is currently in a crisis with the increasing number of breakdown and faults due to technical issues as the airline faces a serious concern with more and more technical officers and pilots continuing to leave. Commenting on the airline’s current concerns as the carrier faced several setbacks due to delays and technical issues [...]
Tourism industry wants loan restructuring solutions
Tourism authorities met the International Monetary Fund (IMF) last week where they raised concerns that act as hurdles for the industry’s progress like a permanent solution to restructuring loans obtained by the sector. Sri Lanka Tourism Development Authority (SLTDA) Chairman Priantha Fernando told the Business Times that during their meeting with the IMF officials the [...]
CSE losing shine on big market caps
The delisting procedure of two large conglomerates within the space of five months has got the Colombo share market talking. Nestle Lanka PLC and Expo Lanka PLC, two companies with some of the largest market caps in the Colombo Stock Exchange (CSE), were recently delisted. The bottomline remains that these companies don’t see enough value [...]
Jetwing Jaffna turns profitable in 2023/24
Jetwing’s Jaffna property has reported a profit this year as a result of the influx of tourists to the country since last year. Jetwing Chairman Hiran Cooray told the Business Times that they expect to make for the first time a profit of close to Rs.25 million by end March 2024. “This is the first [...]
Fury over wage hikes
While public servants in the US and most of Europe are paid competitive salaries, it is Singapore that pays the highest salaries in the world for public servants, largely to deter corruption. Singapore’s Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong was once quoted as saying: “(It is) best to pay the person according to what he is [...]
Money and inflation: Loose connections
Last week’s discussion in this column on the link between money and inflation, while generating a great deal of enthusiasm among the readers, has also led to some other questions from them. For this reason, I thought of continuing with the same discussion by focusing more on the application side of the discussion rather than [...]
Remittances and tourism earnings mainstays in the economy
Workers’ remittances and earnings from tourism have become mainstays in the Sri Lankan economy, with inflows rising month after month, economists said. According to the latest February 2024 data released by the Central Bank (CB), earnings from tourism in February were estimated at US$346 million, in comparison to $342 million for the previous month and [...]
EY considers AI and data analytics as key areas for upskilling
While Artificial Intelligence (AI) and data analytics are globally spoken topics nowadays, Ernst and Young (EY) considers it as key areas for upskilling the future generations. Globally EY is investing around US$1.4 billion on AI related upskilling. EY Global Delivery Services (GDS) Sri Lanka, Location and Consulting Leader, Samantha Rajapaksa during a media briefing held [...]
“Three Colombo hotels for sale”
In response to last week’s story titled “Three Colombo hotels for sale’, M. Shanthikumar, President of the Hotels Association of Sri Lanka (THASL) has sent the following letter which has been edited: “Hotels in Colombo City has the highest investment with some of the finest star class hotels in the entire country. As a single [...]
Good news for McDonald’s employees in Sri Lanka
Good news is rare these days, and every glittering ounce of it should be cherished. A few Sri Lankan companies have stepped in to help McDonald’s employees secure jobs after the chain of outlets was shut down as directed by the courts. Nothing brightens a day like an act of unexpected kindness such as this [...]
Harvard’s Asia Pacific Regional Conference in Sri Lanka
The Harvard Club of Sri Lanka is organising ‘BIG BOLD BRAVE 2024,’ a ground-breaking thought leadership conference on April 3-5 at the Galle Face Hotel in Colombo, Sri Lanka. The conclave is a collaboration of 15+ Harvard Clubs in the Asia Pacific region, the official Alumni Organisations of the prestigious Harvard University, the local chapter [...]
Singapore event showcases 5 innovative start-ups
Hatch together with the Singapore Sri Lanka Business Association, supported by USAID Catalyze and Sri Lankan Airlines, recently showcased the innovative ventures of five Sri Lankan female entrepreneurs in Singapore. The event was not just about pitching ideas; it was a platform for empowering change, Hatch said in a media release. The five entrepreneurs and [...]
Sri Lankan lawyers trained in mediation advocacy
A training session for lawyers on “Mediation Advocacy” was organised by the International ADR Centre (IADRC) on March 26-27. Resource persons from the Singapore International Mediation Centre (SIMC) provided the training for 24 lawyers drawn from among chambers of private practitioners, from leading law firms, corporates and the Attorney General’s department, the organisers said in [...]
Eighteen women entrepreneurs selected for EY Entrepreneurial Winning event
Sandamini Perera (Sri Lanka), Co-founder and Co-Chair, Prime Group and Executive Chairperson, Prime Lands Residencies PLC, is among 18 female entrepreneurs selected by the EY organisation for the EY Entrepreneurial Winning Women™ Asia-Pacific class of 2024 – a bespoke executive programme that identifies and champions a select group of high-potential entrepreneurs who have built profitable [...]
NTB, Amex launch “Experience Sri Lanka” destination campaign
American Express Card Members from around the world can now experience Sri Lanka as a travel destination in 2024, with the “Experience Sri Lanka” campaign launched by Nations Trust Bank (NTB) in partnership with American Express. Offering a wide range of promotions, savings, benefits and privileges, the destination-specific campaign aims to showcase the scenic views [...]
Revenues seen rising at Richard Pieris Group
The Richard Pieris Group, under the leadership of its Chairman/Managing Direction Dr. Sena Yaddehige, has in FY2022/23, delivered a resilient financial performance. The group recorded revenues of Rs.79.1 billion, representing 17 per cent growth, an increase from Rs.67.6 billion in the previous year. Operating profit grew by 9 per cent to Rs.11.7 billion from Rs.10.7 [...]
Ceylinco Life crowned Sri Lanka’s most popular life insurer for 18th year
Ceylinco Life was crowned the most popular life insurance company in Sri Lanka for a record 18th consecutive year in 2024 at the SLIM Kantar Peoples Awards presented by the Sri Lanka Institute of Marketing recently. The SLIM Kantar award is based on consumer preferences as determined by the results of a survey instead of [...]
New school for caregivers
Certis Lanka, in a significant stride towards providing education and fostering the growth of caregivers, has unveiled its newest venture, the Identity College of Higher Education (ICHE) on March 12. ICHE, situated in Colombo, aims to revolutionise caregiver education by offering a comprehensive curriculum tailored to meet the diverse needs of students. The college will [...]
Vision Care’s primary eye screening programme
Vision Care has marked World Optometry Week with the launch of “Vision Care Primary Eye Screening Programme,” as well as the introduction of the ‘Vision Care Eye Screening and Educational Toolkit’. This nationwide initiative aims to promote eye health awareness among school-aged children as well as private and public organisations, while empowering communities with essential [...]
HNB General Insurance in compliance with IFRS 17
HNB General Insurance has complied with the International Financial Reporting Standard (IFRS) 17 by becoming the first local general insurance company to implement WTW’s ResQ Financial Reporter (FR) and engage WTW as the main advisor for the implementation. WTW’s ResQFR is a solution that provides an efficient flexible framework to generate IFRS17 financial statements and [...]