Headline inflation as measured by the yearon- year (Y-o-Y) change in the National Consumer Price Index (NCPI, 2013=100) decreased to 5.9 per cent in April 2020 from 7.0 per cent in March 2020. This was driven by the monthly decline of prices of the items in the Food category and the statistical effect of the…
The S&P SL20 Index of the Colombo Stock Exchange (CSE) gained 6.28% during trading today (21), bettering the record for the highest ever daily percentage gain of the index which stood at 5.25%, which was set on 18th May 2020. This development marks the second occasion the S&P SL20 Index has made historic gains during…
The S&P SL20 Index of the Colombo Stock Exchange (CSE) today (21) marked its highest daily percentage gain in CSE history. The S&P SL20 Index gained 6.98% or 132.90 points to close at 2,037.04. The Index, which includes the 20 largest companies listed on the CSE by market capitalisation, was introduced in 2012 and since then, has…
Macro environment and operating conditions – Sri Lanka demonstrates to have managed the COVID-19 outbreak reasonably well, while the economic fallout from the local and global lockdown will be unprecedented. It has affected supply chains significantly and the cascading effect will severely impact almost all businesses in the country. As it stands now, the impact…
Total operating income of Rs. 6.6 b up by 11% Post-tax profitability of Rs. 1.7 b up by 27% YoY Balance sheet expansion by 4% YTD to Rs. 553 b ROE enhanced to 15% NIMs challenged – 3.2% for the quarter National Development Bank PLC recorded sound financial results for the first quarter ended 31…
First Capital Research, recently stated that Sri Lanka’s economic outlook has further weakened due to the seven-week nationwide lockdown which is now being relaxed gradually. Issuing its third revision on Investment Strategy 2020 for May, First Capital Research revised its Bond Yield Outlook for 1Q2020 to 3Q2020 adjusted downwards, one-year by 150 bps and five-year…
According to Customs monthly provisional exports statistics, merchandize export earnings have recorded a historical decrease by nearly 64% to US $ 277.4 Mn from US $ 772.57 Mn documented in April 2019. Mechanize Export Performance (Values in US$ Mns) Apparel sector has shown a sharp decline (-82%) during the month of April 2020 compared to…
Announces across-the-board reduction of rates encompassing all categories of loans, leases, pawning and OD facilities The Commercial Bank of Ceylon has announced a reduction of lending rates across the board in response to the present needs of individual and corporate borrowers and in line with the downward trend of interest rates in Sri Lanka. Effective…
Bloomberg – S&P Global Ratings lowered Sri Lanka’s credit rating by one level to B-, citing the government’s worsening fiscal position. The rating was lowered from B, with a stable outlook, S&P said in a statement on Wednesday. That’s six levels below investment grade. S&P said the Covid-19 pandemic could push the island nation’s economy into a…
Tea industry can demonstrate its ability to withstand the pressure mounted by the COVID-19 pandemic, Sri Lanka Tea Board Chairman Jayampathy Molligoda said. “We have already identified about 12 countries and we are aggressively going ahead with the tea promotional campaign. Hence, I’m confident that the tea industry can demonstrate its ability to withstand the pressure and get more…
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