By DEVENDRA SAKSENA Currently, the words ‘debt trap’ have a distinctly Chinese connotation. According to the Western press, the Chinese, as part of their geostrategy, have inveigled poor nations into borrowing huge amounts from them for fanciful infrastructural projects; almost all borrower countries are in dire economic straits, because most such projects are lying incomplete, […]

Opposition and Samagi Jana Balwegaya leader Sajith Premadasa has said he was surprised by President Ranil Wickremesinghe’s declaration that Sri Lanka would send a warship to the Red Sea to deter Houthi attacks on commercial ships. Premadasa said that the President’s claim that a warship would be deployed because Houthi attacks caused an increase in the prices of […]

Turkey is cracking down on Chinese electric vehicle imports, the latest country to do so after the European Union launched its own probe into the Asian country’s EV subsidies. Companies importing EVs to Turkey must have at least 140 authorized service stations spread evenly across the country and open a call center for each brand, […]

ECONOMYNEXT –Central Bank Governor Nandalal Weerasinghe urged the public to become informants to broaden the tax net and thus reduce both overall direct and indirect taxes. The government has raised Value Added Tax (VAT), an indirect tax to 18 percent from 15 percent with effect from January 1. The move also will see some VAT […]

‘Parliament amended law to favour tax defaulters, with defaulter being able to drag appealing process for 15 years’ By Shamindra Ferdinando Chairman of Sectoral Oversight Committee on National Economic and Physical Plans Mahindananda Aluthgamage yesterday (05) said that he intended to utilise Anti-Corruption Act No 09 of 2023 against top government revenue officials who neglected […]

A pivotal meeting was held between Sri Lanka’s Ambassador to Japan E. Rodney M. Perera and Finance Minister Shunichi Suzuki at the Ministry of Finance in Tokyo, ahead of the latter’s forthcoming official visit to Sri Lanka next week. This formal meeting was pursuant to a brief exchange between Ambassador Perera and Finance Minister Suzuki […]

At a dinner gathering with professionals in Jaffna on Thursday (04), President Ranil Wickremesinghe said that provinces should utilize the powers granted by the 13th Amendment for economic development, asserting that devolution should not merely be a political concept but an economic reality. “If we examine the provisions of the 13th Amendment, there is ample […]

President Ranil Wickremesinghe has endorsed the 13th Amendment to the Constitution for a stronger local economy, assuring non-interference. MORE

by Neville Ladduwahetty What Sri Lanka has achieved since it declared itself insolvent is hailed by some with much optimism. The “relative stability” currently experienced is presented by the Governor of the Central Bank “as the outcome of a united effort from the outset” (The Island, December 26, 2023). The focus of that collaborative effort […]

Friday 5th January, 2024 The UNP is in overdrive to shore up what remains of its image with an eye to the next election. It is bragging that the country has posted a primary surplus after a lapse of more than two decades. It insists that credit for this be given to President Ranil Wickremesinghe, […]

Turmoil in China’s housing market, coupled with weak consumer sentiment, is weighing on the nation’s economy. Once the country’s largest property developer, Evergrande is now facing a lawsuit that may end with its liquidation, while Dalian Wanda Group, China’s largest mall

SC asks Parliament to address inconsistencies in four clauses at committee stage By Shamindra Ferdinando The Sectoral Oversight Committee on National Security has given the go ahead for the enactment of the National Hydrographic Bill. Chairman of the Committee, Rear Admiral (Retd.) Sarath Weerasekera recently told a senior delegation that represented the National Aquatic Resources […]