PublicFinance.lk – Net Foreign Assets (NFA) of a country’s monetary authority refers to the difference between gross foreign reserve assets and liabilities related to foreign reserves. Typically, such liabilities include the Central Bank’s liabilities to the IMF, swaps, and any other reserve related liabilities. In August 2021 the Central Bank’s NFA was LKR –84 billion….
A twin deficit problem For much of its post-independence period Sri Lanka has been characterised by twin deficits: fiscal deficits and deficits in the external current account. What this implies is the country spends more than it earns and consumes more than it produces. The two deficits are linked because the deficit in the external…
By Jeevith Senaratne An industry’s response to an unprecedented crisis such as the COVID-19 pandemic and its aftermath is a testament to its ability to weather the storm and come out stronger on the other side. This was particularly true for Sri Lanka’s apparel sector. While the initial wave of COVID-19 posed many challenges to…
The Silk Road Journal by Mahika Ming The human civilization revolving around China is more than 12,000 years old according to scientifically proven archaeological evidence. Rice cultivation, paper, magnets, the umbrella, the compass and gunpowder are few of the most important contributions made by the Chinese civilization to mankind. The ancient chronicles of Sri Lanka…
Business Sentiment – The Index Continues To Head North At a recent webinar, the Institute of Policy Studies of Sri Lanka’s (IPS) Executive Director Dr. Dushni Weerakoon noted that a V-shaped recovery seems to be on the cards for the Sri Lankan economy, following the 3.2 percent contraction recorded last year. With a growth rate…
Sri Lanka’s merchandize exports in September 2021 recorded US$ 995.8 Mn as per the data released by the Sri Lanka Customs. EDB Chairman & CE, Suresh D. de Mel said, “Observing the export figures of September, it is remarkable to see that our exporters performed this well amidst travel restrictions and lockdowns due to the…
Global study finds 78% of people feel “stuck” professionally and personally (77%) 90% of people say their meaning of success has changed since the pandemic started 89% of people want technology to help define their future 78% of people felt their companies were more concerned with their mental health now than before the pandemic People…
Global economic developments have impacted Sri Lanka’s external sector performance, and the economy overall. While Sri Lanka managed the first wave of the COVID-19 outbreak imposing lockdown measures for two months (March to May 2020), it has since been hit by a second outbreak since October 2020 and a third wave in April 2021. The…
By A. Sukumaran – Chairman, Joint Apparel Association Forum (JAAF) The recent European Union (EU) monitoring mission visit to Sri Lanka on the Generalised Scheme of Preferences (GSP) Plus trade concessions scheme, has ignited much speculation locally, on the potential costs of losing GSP+ to the EU. However, many such analyses have significantly under-estimated the…
Key Takeaways Increasingly, many experts feel transitioning to an endemic is a realistic endpoint for the current pandemic. Endemic means the governments will have to deal with COVID in a more localised fashion while the public will have to continue with the current pandemic-induced lifestyles to some degree. Tourism may resume but we are likely…
Video Story
