Economic

Sri Lanka’s trade deficit in the first half has widened by over $ 1 billion to $ 4.3 billion from a year earlier on account of rising imports, though exports have performed commendably.

The Export Development Board (EDB) raised concerns on the shortage of containers as a result of multiple global supply chain bottlenecks.

Over the last 15 months (March 2020-June 2021) the Government has attracted over $ 950 million in investments, dedicated to revitalising the country’s tourism sector.

In a bid to overcome the LP gas crisis, the Government has decided to establish a new firm affiliated to the State-run Ceylon Petroleum Cooperation (CPC).

The Government yesterday announced several tough and difficult measures aimed at keeping the cost of living under check from a sharper rise amidst mounting pressure.

Finance Minister Basil Rajapaksa expects to save foreign exchange by reducing the import of goods and increasing domestic production.

The Colombo stock market yesterday suffered one of its steepest falls in recent weeks despite healthy turnover.

282 partially or fully-owned SEOs crippled as a result of non-operation due to COVID-19

The Land Valuation Indicator (LVI) for the Colombo District increased to 155.1 during the first half of 2021 according to its compiler, the Central Bank said.

Industry giant State-owned Bank of Ceylon (BOC) yesterday formally announced stellar financial results for the first half, which have overtaken the performance of 2020 full year, reinforcing that the slew of recent measures amidst challenges had paid off.

The Colombo stock market yesterday marked four consecutive sessions of net foreign inflow, a development that has lifted sentiments of investors and brokers alike.

The country’s cinema industry is furious over the National Film Corporation’s (NFC) move to shut out the private sector by going back on the industry’s partial liberalisation and taking up a larger role in distributing films. Cinema owners and private sector importers and distributors warned that the move would be disastrous and put millions of investments made since 2001’s partial deregulation, and those planned for the future, at risk

The Central Bank (CB) said this week it had streamlined the complaint handling procedure in addition to launching a hotline for public inquiries.

The Central Bank (CB) has directed all commercial banks not to unduly delay crediting export proceeds to relevant accounts of exporters.

The Colombo stock market bounced back yesterday after suffering one of the steepest falls in recent times whilst it ended the week with an average turnover of Rs. 5 billion, reflecting higher investor activity.

The latest Sri Lanka Development Bonds (SLDBs) issue worth $ 75 million has gone undersubscribed once again.

Bengaluru (Reuters): Gold prices will average a little above their current level of $ 1,830 an ounce for the remainder of 2021 before edging lower next year as the global economy recovers and central banks begin to tighten monetary policy, a Reuters poll showed.

The Parliament yesterday decided to defer taking up the new Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) Bill till end August.