Reuters: Nigerian Finance Minister Ngozi Okonjo-Iweala and former Colombian Finance Minister Jose Antonio Ocampo are set to make the first concerted challenge to the U.S. grip on the top job at the World Bank, according to sources.  The two globally respected economists and diplomats will be nominated for the World Bank presidency by South Africa ...

The Ceylon Chamber of Commerce (CCC), the pioneering business chamber in the country will turn 173 years on 25 March. An anniversary forum for its distinguished members and top corporate personnel will be held on 22 March from 5.30p.m to 8p.m. at the Golden Pond, Hotel Taj Samudra Colombo to celebrate this milestone.   Ceylon ...

Lankan born Gishan Dissanaike, the Adam Smith Professor of Corporate Governance, University of Cambridge will share key insights to the good, bad and the ugly of insider trading at seminar on Monday jointly organized by the Institute of Chartered Corporate Secretaries and  Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) in partnership with the Daily FT. Dissanaike will ...

After 30 years of violence, northern Sri Lanka is opening up to tourism Saying I’m going on holiday to Sri Lanka elicits one of two reactions from my friends. There’s the ooh-elephants-temples-cocktails-at-sunset-lucky-you! brigade. And then there are my friends who read the newspapers. “Which beach did you say you’re staying on?” emails a friend. “The one where ...

The entry in to Sri Lanka by Malaysia’s sovereign wealth fund Khazanah Nasional Berhad via John Keells Holdings (JKH) is being hailed as a all round boost for the country, the Colombo stock market as well as the premier blue chip. JKH which has many first to its credit is also the first stock on ...

My column today is an attempt to focus our attention on a few less spoken or untold developments that may have a profound influence on how we carve our way through in creating a desirable social, economic and political future for mankind on this only planet of ours. While I will not specifically touch on ...

Blue Diamonds seeks approval to subdivide shares Blue Diamonds Jewellery Worldwide Plc announced it would hold an Extraordinary General Meeting to obtain approval to subdivide its shares. The sub division will be based on the number of shares on 4 May. Dealing on the shares of the company will be suspended from 8 to 10 ...

With the wave of rapid expansion of the company’s branch network and business activities, Multi Finance recently announced the appointment of Manohara S. Tillakawardana as an Independent, Non-Executive Director of the company. He is presently a Director and Lead Consultant in TOGS Associates Ltd., a company which is engaged in providing consultancy and advisory services ...

Despite a select few reporting highest-ever profits, the combined figure of 210 companies which have released their financials so far reveals a concerning trend. The cumulative earnings for the quarter ended on 31 December 2011 was Rs. 40.6 billion, up by only 0.56% year-on-year according to broking sources who have tracked corporate results. The 210 ...

Clouded prospects in developed markets cast a shadow over outlook for trade and economyBy Jonathan Story Two key forces that have driven Asia’s transformation for decades can be counted on to continue apace in the coming year: economic development and China’s rise. Nonetheless, individual Asian countries will struggle to balance domestic and international responsibilities in ...

By Cheranka Mendis UNP MP Dr. Harsha de Silva yesterday accused the Government of playing a two-faced role to the IMF and the people of the country. Quoting from a letter allegedly handed over to then MD of IMF Dominic Strauss-Khan signed by Central Bank Governor Nivard Cabraal and then Deputy Minister of Finance and ...

By Dr. Laksiri Fernando Sri Lanka’s independence on 4 February 1948 was never a final act, but a major landmark in a process of evolution from colonialism to independence and underdevelopment to development. It is truly a process of internal emancipation. It is the 63rd anniversary of this landmark or the 64th Independence Day that ...

Reuters: China will continue to invest in euro zone government debt, the country’s central bank governor said on Wednesday, while calling on Europeans to produce more attractive investment products for China. Zhou Xiaochuan admitted that China and other emerging nations like Brazil, Russia or India were waiting for the right time to help the bloc, ...

Q: 13 Plus has become the most discussed topic in the political scene. What do you think about 13 Plus? A: Before looking at the 13th Amendment or the 13 Plus, first let us give a chance to the present mechanism. I strongly believe the present mechanism can address the majority of our issues. The ...

Says Central Bank ‘miserably politicised’; wants change at the top; warns of public, worker agitation UNP MP and its chief spokesman on the economy Dr. Harsha de Silva yesterday said the Government has to blame itself and take responsibility for the current economic crisis in the country. In a statement, Dr. de Silva said: “The ...

Reuters: If the World Bank is correct, 2012 will see the second slowest year of global economic growth in a decade, at a level consistent with a world recession that, like the 2008/2009 financial crisis, would not spare Asia. Its sister organisation, the International Monetary Fund, warns that economic expansion in China could be slashed ...

Following are some responses from three economists to the guest column by Chandra Jayaratne titled ‘Important issues’ for Sri Lankan legislators, the Executive, policymakers, Central Bankers, economists and thought leaders to ponder over published on 2 February 1) I disagree with the Stiglitz-Krugman line. My diagnosis is that Europe is in this mess for two ...

Reuters: A new guessing game is about to begin: will China’s incoming generation of leaders show more courage than the current incumbents in tackling deep economic imbalances that threaten to bring growth to a sudden stop? The question, easier to frame than to answer, is critical for the world economy. China has accounted for about ...

Fresh call for applications after respondents to first attempt fail to fully satisfy Commissioners New ad states remuneration package negotiable The hunt for the new Director General of the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) appears elusive as the capital market regulatory body is advertising afresh for a suitable candidate. The first attempt saw over a ...

The Visible Hand of the government ‘The Visible Hand’ was the title which the famed London-based economics weekly, The Economist, used when it published a special report in its issue on 21 January 2012 on the rise of state capitalism in the modern era. The title has a pun

Rapidly expanding, Divasa Finance Limited recently announced the appointment of Prof. Arjuna De Silva and Mr. Vasula Premawardhana as non-executive directors of the company. Prof. Arjuna De Silva (MBBS, MD, MSc [Oxon], FRCP [Lond], FCCP) is a professor in medicine at the Faculty of Medicine, University of Kelaniya Sri Lanka. He obtained the MRCP (UK) ...

Indian External Affairs Minister S.M. Krishna announced in Colombo a substantial expansion in the scholarships currently being offered by Government of India to meritorious Sri Lankan students. Under this initiative, the number of scholarships and Self-Finance slots for Undergraduate, Masters and Phd Courses is being increased from the existing 113 slots to 270 per year. ...

Facing the short-term economic challengesThe macroeconomic imbalances Sri Lanka has achieved a growth rate of 8.3% last year and inflation fell to 4.9% year-on-year in December 2011. These are noteworthy achievements at a time when the global economic landscape has been hostile with a slowdown in the US and a crisis in Europe; key markets ...

Developing countries should prepare for further downside risks, as Euro Area debt problems and weakening growth in several big emerging economies are dimming global growth prospects, the World Bank said yesterday in the newly-released Global Economic Prospects (GEP) 2012. The bank has lowered its growth forecast for 2012 to 5.4 per cent for developing countries ...

Reuters: China’s economy grew at its weakest pace in 2-1/2 years in the latest quarter and it appeared headed for an even sharper slowdown in the coming months as export demand fades and the housing market falters. The fourth-quarter year-on-year growth of 8.9 percent, although slightly stronger than the 8.7 percent that economists polled by ...

‘A ruler with a depleted treasury eats into the very vitality of the citizens and the country. A ruler, who impoverishes his own people or angers them by unjust exactions will also lose their loyalty Impoverishment, greed and dissatisfaction are engendered among the subjects, when the ruler among other things (i) fails to give what ought ...

Nicholas D. Kristof, who is a regular contributor to the Op-Ed columns of the New York Times and a frequent visitor to North Korea over the past dozen years, had  the following comment to make about the passing of Kim Jong-il and the paroxysms of grief with which the people of that country responded to ...

LTTE rump groups and pro-LTTE organisations are trying hard to achieve their separatist ideology in the countryDefence Secretary Gotabaya Rajapaksa on Tuesday said that there is a possibility of the re-emergence of the LTTE in Sri Lanka, as LTTE sympathisers abroad are still struggling to achieve the LTTE’s separatist ideology in the country. He made ...

“Our sense is that if we do not act boldly and if we do not act together, the economy around the world runs the risk of a downward spiral of uncertainty, financial instability and potential collapse of global demand… we could run the risk of what some commentators are already calling the lost decade” – ...

If the Governor of Central Bank has an urge to enter politics, he should come to Parliament without playing politics inside the CB, charges United National Party Parliamentarian and well-known Economist Dr. Harsha de Silva. Dr. de Silva notes that Governor Nivard Cabraal should respect the sanctity of the Central Bank and therefore if Cabraal ...