business Sri Lanka

CHINA is set to dominate the global economy as it becomes the richest country in the world by 2032, experts have revealed.

The United States will be overtaken as the most powerful economy in the world as China’s strong growth continues, according to the Centre for Economics and Business Research.

World Bank lead economist John Litwack said: “China has maintained its growth resilience and gained reform momentum.”

The UK-based think tank revealed what they expect to be the world’s 10 biggest economies in 2032, with the USA sitting in second behind the communist superpower.

India, Japan, Germany and Brazil make up the rest of the top six ahead of the UK in seventh.

China’s growth has been partly driven by the “new economy” with internet firms succeeding with massive growth of 16 per cent in the last decade, the Chinese Academy of Social Sciences said. The report claimed that President Donald Trump’s isolationist trade agenda will contribute to its downfall as the world biggest economy.

The UK think tank said: “The impact of President Trump on trade has been less severe than expected, the USA will retain its global crown a year longer than we anticipated in the last report.”

South Korea and India will both climb four places, with Seoul making its first appearance in the top 10 and eighth.

The rise of Asian economies is reflected in the gloomy fortunes of the former global powers of Europe.

Benefits for most other taxpayers would be smaller, but the President attempted to sell the bill as a “Christmas present” for middle-class Americans in part because it would trigger job growth.

President Trump told reporters on the White House lawn before travelling to Camp David for the weekend: “It’ll be fantastic for the middle-income people and for jobs, most of all.”

He also predicted the legislation would cause the economy to soar beyond its current 3 per cent rate of growth. Many economists believe that attaining that would be challenging – the nation last topped 5 per cent in 1984.

The Republican plan is the widest-ranging reshaping of the tax code in three decades and is expected to add to the nation’s $20trillion (£15trillion) debt. The tax cuts are projected to add $1.46trillion over a decade.

China Economy News 

Sri Lanka’s biggest year-end shopping fiesta, the wOw.lk Shopping Carnival, will once again bring bargains galore to Sri Lankan shoppers on December 29, 30 and 31, 2017 at the BMICH, Colombo.

Held for the fourth consecutive year, the title sponsor for Shopping Carnival 2017 is wOw.lk.

The wOw.lk Shopping Carnival will have nearly 40 categories of products with dozens of stalls from all leading brands and dealers.

The range of products include home appliances and a range of electronic items, personal items such as branded fashion and other clothing for the entire family, Jewelry, shoes, bags and cosmetics, home ware of every kind – from lighting to household furniture to all the products to furnish your kitchen. Air conditioners and solar systems will also be available at the carnival, along with various types of vehicle parts and suppliers. The wOw.lk stalls will be a highlight of the Shopping Carnival. Located in stalls L5 to L8, the wOw.lk section of the Carnival will have everything you need to start the New Year with a home filled with everything your heart desires.

Featuring all the product categories you find online at the wOw.lk store, the wOw.lk stalls will bring you all the bargains you are looking for in a range of items – from Electronic items such laptops, TVs, ACs, washing machines, refrigerators, as well as phones and tabs and personal beauty products.

As an extra special offer to customers who are gearing up for the New Year, the wOw.lk stalls will feature special bargains, deals and exclusive credit card promotions – with never-before seen deals with up to 70% off the regular price on some items.

All the bargains you have come to expect from the wOw.lk online store will be available as well as many newer offers.

wOw.lk is the largest e-commerce website in Sri Lanka, operated by Digital Commerce Lanka (Pvt) Ltd, a group company of Dialog Axiata PLC.

Established in 2011, the site was one of the pioneer websites in Sri Lanka and has since grown into the leading e-commerce company active in Sri Lanka’s industry, catering to both international and local consumers.

wOw.lk is owned and operated by Digital Commerce Lanka (Pvt) Limited, a wholly owned subsidiary of Dialog Axiata PLC.

The company is an industry pioneer and the largest ecommerce company catering to domestic consumers across the island. wOw.lk continuously strives to meet the varied needs of the local online shopping community, delivering a superior virtual shopping experience with a variety of affordable products and services. 

Malaysian Prime Minister Dato' Sri Mohd Najib bin Tun Abdul Razak watches a demonstration of the Finger Reader at The Dialog Iconic in Colombo, during his recent state visit to Sri Lanka. The Finger Reader is a wearable device that assists in reading printed text for the visually impaired, developed in partnership with the Singapore University of Technology and Design. The Malaysian PM was introduced to Dialog’s digital innovations in digital education, digital inclusion and the application of artificial intelligence for Customer Care. Also present are Minister Gayantha Karunathilaka and Axiata Group Berhad Regional Chief Executive for South Asia, Dr. Hans Wijayasuriya.

Leo Burnett Sri Lanka’s iconic leader and world-renowned advertising professional Ranil de Silva, will step down from his role after serving as the agency’s Managing Director for the last 18 years.

After 36 years of making his mark as a mover and shaker in Sri Lanka’s marketing communications industry and taking Leo Burnett to unprecedented heights, Ranil will step down from his role and responsibilities of managing the Sri Lankan office of the Publicis Groupe. Ranil will pass on the baton of the agency’s leadership of Leo Burnett to its CEO Arosha Perera, who along with a seasoned leadership team will take over the management of Leo Burnett Sri Lanka and the other brands within the Groupe.

Arosha Perera has been actively engaged at the company for the last few years and has prepared himself for this new role. He will take over the leadership of the Leo Burnett agency with effect from January 1.

In what has been an incredible innings and a career filled with a multitude of milestones, powerful ideas and life-changing accomplishments as well as countless global awards, Ranil has helped to not only build Leo Burnett Sri Lanka into the most awarded agency in the country, but he has also played a pivotal role in ensuring the development of Sri Lanka’s advertising industry at large.

Ranil started his career at JWT and progressed professionally, taking up a posting in Jakarta Indonesia and returning to Sri Lanka to lead the agency at the age of 32, after which he was called to serve in a regional role based in Singapore. He began his journey at Leo Burnett in the spirit of the agency’s founder himself – by reaching for the stars.

Ranil de Silva – Managing Director, Leo Burnett Sri Lanka said: “I have had the privilege to lead a talented team of the country’s best advertising professionals. These are the people who have made each day I have spent in this industry worth its while, by being the people they’ve grown to be. I believe the best people in this industry reside at R A De Mel Mawatha.”

“The individuals who are playing critical roles in the industry are people who have grown up with us. In fact, many of the industry’s leaders are my former colleagues. It is such a pleasure for me to leave behind for the ad industry and for Leo Burnett a legacy of talented, capable and committed professionals. People whom I know will, as we say at Leo Burnett, “reach for the stars”. These professionals are my gift to the industry. They are also a gift to me for my 36+ years of passion for this industry.

Ranil added: “Arosha has enjoyed an illustrious advertising career spanning over two decades, and fulfilled similar roles to the ones I have done. Like me, he was groomed at JWT.”

Commenting on Ranil’s contribution to the agency network and industry Saurabh Varma, Chief Executive Officer South Asia Leo Burnett Group said: “Ranil has added immense value to Leo Burnett Worldwide’s network over the years, helping us to not only bring home metals but to strengthen our reputation as a world-class communications agency in the region and beyond.”

Fairfirst Insurance's latest partnership was with the All-Island School Children Transport Association, an independent body of school van drivers whose objective is to raise awareness on the yellow colour school van concept and ensure the safety of the children travelling in them.

As a first step towards co-creating safer transport for children, Fairfirst Insurance recently signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) with the All-Island School Children Transport Association.

As part of this agreement, Fairfirst Insurance will provide the Association an exclusive Motor Insurance policy that protects their vehicle and most importantly provides financial assistance to the children, driver and the attendant travelling in the van in the event of an accident.

Niranjan Nagendra, General Manager Sales and Marketing at Fairfirst said, “This is another milestone for us and a partnership that goes beyond just business. It serves as an opportunity for us to be a support system for self-employed van drivers and amplify efforts into creating safer school rides for kids and give their parents a peace of mind”

“Children are the most important segment in our society. With this initiative Fairfirst is planning to drive the message of road safety among society and inculcate the same message among members of the School Van Association, whilst protecting their self-employed lifestyle,” said Nelum Weragoda, National Head Affinity Account Management.

Subsequent to the MoU signing, Fairfirst Insurance conducted a workshop on Saturday with 100 regional officers from the All-Island School Children Transport Association and Sales Agents from various Fairfirst Insurance branches island-wide. The program was structured to connect the regional officers from the Association with the respective regional Fairfirst Sales Agents from across the island.

The All-Island School Children Transport Association was formed back in 2000 and now has a membership of 27,000 school van drivers from all across Sri Lanka. The President of the Association Malshi De Silva said, “We are very happy to be able to partner with Fairfirst Insurance. Thanks to them, not only is our source of livelihood given financial protection but so are the kids, which is the most important thing”

Fairfirst Insurance is part of Canada's Fairfax Group and among the top general insurance companies of Sri Lanka. Fairfirst Insurance serves individuals, businesses and institutions across this beautiful island through a versatile workforce spread across a comprehensive branch network, affinity partners and leading brokers in the market.

With nearly 30 years of experience in Insurance, Re-Insurance and other Financial Services across the globe, the Fairfax Group is Canada's largest Property and Casualty Insurer. They have over 30 operating companies worldwide which includes names such as, Brit Insurance (UK), Alltrust (China), Odyssey Re (US), Singapore Re, MCIS Insurance (Malaysia), Polish Re, Zenith (US), Gulf Insurance (Kuwait) Allied World (Switzerland) and ICICI Lombard (India) to name a few. 

The diversified Raigam Group will look at a Colombo Stock Exchange listing soon, said its Chairman Dr. Ravi Liyanage.

He said that they have several companies and would look at one of them to be listed. “We also want to rest and give more administrative powers to new people who would get involved in the company.”

He said that Raigam Wayamba Salterns PLC (RWSL) is already listed and they were planning a rights issue. “However due to delays which I do not want to go into detail, we have now decided to fold up this.”

The Chairman recalled that over a decade ago salt was imported despite Sri Lanka being an island. “We requested the government for protection and tax for salt imports and when this guarantee was given, we invested in salterns and today we are proud to say Sri Lanka is self sufficient in salt. We are also happy that we were one of the pioneers to lead Sri Lanka towards self sufficiency in salt.”

He said that today over 10,000 are dependent on the industry as there are also several individuals who manufacture salt as a cottage industry.

Asked if they were looking at exports, he answered in the negative and said that they cannot compete with India. “Their labour is cheap and most importantly their climate is ideal to produce salt.”

He however said that today chlorine, chemicals to manufacture soap and HCL are being imported and since there will soon be a surplus of salt they will look at manufacturing these in Sri Lanka.

He also predicted that soon the country will move in to use of powered salt and move away from crystal salt like in European countries as it is more hygienic.

Raigam Group is the country’s second largest salt producer after the state among the seven major players. It was a pioneer to begin production of Pure Vacuum Dried (PVD) salt at their plant in Palavi in Puttalam.

CEO Ganaka Amarasinghe said that the company profits too are on the increase and their turnover was around Rs. 340 million.

Director Dr. Sampath Amaratunga said they will also look at diversifying to the tourism sector and try to introduce tourism near salterns which have unique scenic locations especially in the Eastern Province. 

Central Bank (CB) Governor Dr Indrajit Coomaraswamy yesterday emphasized that the CB was still looking for a credible investor with proof of funds to bail out troubled Central Investment and Finance PLC depositors.

The Governor also refuted recent media reports which said that the Central Bank is planning to close down CIFL and its group companies to cover up the irregular and possibly illegal conduct of Central Bank officials regulating these companies.

“We have been looking for a potential investor to resurrect the company since 2014, but unfortunately, we haven’t been able to find a credible investor with poof of funds so far.”

“Our lives will be so much easier if an investor comes clean with proof of money. In this regard, the Bank is still encouraging prospective investors to resolve the matter. We’re happy to have an investor, but we can’t let this drag on for a long period.”

The Governor further added that the Central Bank conduced a forensic audit way back in September 2013 on the issue of CIFL and findings of the audit have been shared with the Auditor General’s department and CID.

Meanwhile, the Central Bank has requested Paypal to consider starting inward remittance services to Sri Lanka.

According to Central Bank Senior Deputy Governor Nandalal Weerasinghe, Sri Lanka invited Paypal to start services in Sri Lanka three years ago. However, Paypal has noted that there weren’t sufficient volumes to commence operations in Sri Lanka during that time.

“Paypal is a private company; it is their business decision whether to enter Sri Lanka or not,” Weerasinghe said.

Dr Coomaraswamy also said that the CB is willing to provide necessary regulatory support for Paypal to start inward remittance services to Sri Lanka and there is no restriction for them to conduct operations even under the existing regulations. 

Sri Lanka Telecom PLC (SLT), a blue-chip company and a dominant player in the Sri Lankan Telecom and Information Technology Enabled Services (ITES) space, announced today that the directors of the company have resolved to issue Rs. 5.0 billion listed debentures with a green shoe option for a further Rs. 2.0 billion, subject to regulatory approval.

SLT is a listed company on the Colombo Stock Exchange (CSE) and has positioned itself as the preferred digital lifestyle provider (DLP) in Sri Lanka, providing a wider range of services such as voice, data, internet, global connectivity, television, education and other related services to the nation.

Having maintained a fair growth rate despite the competitive and challenging market environment, the group reported a turnover of Rs. 74 billion during the year 2016 while owning Rs.143 billion total assets by the end of same year.

The company expects to invest proceeds of the debenture in its service expansions in the areas such as IPTV, FTTH, data centers, global connectivity and to improve the maturity profile of its long term debt.Sri Lanka Telecom PLC (SLT), a blue-chip company and a dominant player in the Sri Lankan Telecom and Information Technology Enabled Services (ITES) space, announced today that the directors of the company have resolved to issue Rs. 5.0 billion listed debentures with a green shoe option for a further Rs. 2.0 billion, subject to regulatory approval.

SLT is a listed company on the Colombo Stock Exchange (CSE) and has positioned itself as the preferred digital lifestyle provider (DLP) in Sri Lanka, providing a wider range of services such as voice, data, internet, global connectivity, television, education and other related services to the nation.

Having maintained a fair growth rate despite the competitive and challenging market environment, the group reported a turnover of Rs. 74 billion during the year 2016 while owning Rs.143 billion total assets by the end of same year.

The company expects to invest proceeds of the debenture in its service expansions in the areas such as IPTV, FTTH, data centers, global connectivity and to improve the maturity profile of its long term debt.

Sunshine Holdings PLC announced that it would be further consolidating its stake in Estate Management Services Limited (EMS), the holding company for Watawala Plantations PLC, Hatton Plantations PLC and Watawala Tea Ceylon Limited (WTCL) – two of Sri Lanka’s most profitable plantations and leading tea brands.

Previously managed under tripartite ownership between Sunshine Holdings PLC, Pyramid Wilmar, and Tata Global Beverages, with each party holding an equal share in EMS, Sunshine’s stake in EMS will increase up to 60% of its issued share capital, while Pyramid Wilmar will hold the remaining 40%.

Meanwhile, Tata Global Beverages will continue its collaborative partnership with Sunshine Holdings, but with a revised strategy that places greater emphasis on international branding and marketing of TATA Tea which will continue to be sourced from Watawala Plantations.

“Our close partnership with Tata Global Beverages has resulted in numerous achievements, milestones and accolades for Watawala Plantations and WTCL over the past two decades. This long and fruitful relationship with Tata Global Beverages is underpinned by an unblemished legacy of trust, excellence, and innovation and moving forward, we will continue to draw on these strengths as we continue to adapt and grow,” Sunshine Holdings Group Managing Director Vish Govindasamy said.

Notably, Sunshine Holdings has an investment in Tata Communications Lanka Ltd, of which Govindasamy is the Chairman, who expressed that Sunshine would continue to seek out synergistic branding and marketing opportunities, particularly with regard to international markets, leveraging on the immense resources and global reach of Tata Global Beverages.

In a strategic move to diversify into the IT solutions domain, Lanka Century Investments PLC.(LCI), a conglomerate reputed for its market dominance in manufacturing, real estates and strategic investments, announced that it has completed the acquisition of the global IT enterprise solutions provider, Millennium Information Technologies Pvt. Ltd., (MillenniumIT ESP).

Under the terms of the agreement, LCI will acquire a 100% stake of MillenniumIT ESP from London Stock Exchange Group (LSEG) with management and shareholding control. As part of this acquisition agreement, LCI will also enter into a wider ownership plan with the employees of MillenniumIT ESP giving them an equity stake and enabling them to play a significant role in shaping the company’s future as owner managers.

LSEG will retain full ownership of MillenniumIT Software, the trading technology and software development component of the business.

With over 3200 employees, the LCI Group, isreputed for its market dominance in manufacturing, real estate and strategic investments.Through LCI’s various investments and restructuring the Group has grown to become a medium sized, diversified conglomerate. The acquisition of MillenniumIT ESP is part of the Group’s Vison 2020 strategy designed to deliver strong global growth.

This acquisition is expected to boost the Groups’ effort to revamp and rebuild a sustainable future-oriented conglomerate geared to takeon the tech-oriented business opportunities available inglobal markets.

Commenting on the acquisition, Murali Prakash – Group CEO/MD, Lanka Century Investments PLC stated that, “We are pleased to conclude this transaction and I would like to officially welcome our new colleagues from MillenniumIT ESP and the tremendous talent they bring to the LCI Group”.

“Technology plays a pivotal role across the world and the acquisition of MillenniumIT ESP will accelerate LCI’s international growth strategy. The Group will be well positioned to pursue the global opportunities posed by fintech and other enterprise businesses through the creation of a world class brand portfolio.”

MillenniumITESP is one of Sri Lanka’s leading information systems solutions providersdelivering IT solutions for many industries; the largest of which are in the financial and telecommunications areas. 

The Central Bank (CB) yesterday announced that the CB has decided to maintain policy interest rates at their present levels.

However, the CB will continue to cautiously monitor the developments in the economy and take necessary policy actions, if warranted, the Bank said.

The Sri Lankan economy grew moderately by 3.7% during the first nine months of 2017. Agriculture activities were adversely affected by both drought and flood conditions while Industry activities were driven by construction (2.6%), and manufacturing (2.4%). Services activities were supported by financial services (19.6%), telecommunication (19.5%) and insurance activities (10.9%).

The Central Bank said Sri Lanka’s inflation is expected to return to its desired level towards the end of the first quarter of 2018.

Speaking at the eighth monetary policy review media conference held at the Central Bank yesterday, Dr Coomaraswamy said that Sri Lanka’s economy continues to stabilize in broad terms and the ongoing stabilization process is being endorsed by the fact that the IMF Executive Board approved the third review of the Extended Fund Facility this year.

“All this means there is a degree of confidence in the Sri Lankan economy and it seems to be improving as far as international capital markets, rating agencies and investors are concerned. There seems to be increasing confidence in the Sri Lankan economy around the world and the economy is in a reasonably good place at the end of this year.”

The country is making progress on the stabilization process, the Governor said, adding that Sri Lanka needs to get growth up through economic reforms, not by artificially stimulating it, but by introducing appropriate macroeconomic policies.

“On a number of fronts, things have improved in terms of private sector credit, imports, etc. But there are two other data points we will keep looking at, which are wages and inflation expectations. Going forward, we need to balance things out. In addition, we are beginning to see some recovery in oil prices, which should have a positive impact on remittance.”

The monetary policy review further revealed that Sri Lanka’s headline inflation continued to remain at high levels due to high food prices, while core inflation decelerated in November 2017.

The Central Bank also noted that growth of credit to the private sector continued to decelerate in November 2017 as expected and y-o-y credit growth to the private sector further declined to 15.4% in November 2017 from 16.2% in October 2017.

The cumulative expansion in credit during the first 11 months of 2017 was Rs. 557.5 billion compared to Rs. 676.2 billion in the corresponding period of 2016.

The rupee depreciated by 1.9% against the US dollar during the year up to December 27.

The Central Bank purchased around US$ 1.7 bn (on a net basis) from the forex market. Cumulative net foreign inflows to the government securities market amounted to US$ 452.1 million (up to December 26) while foreign investments in the CSE (secondary market) recorded an net inflow of US$ 120.1 million up to December 27.

In October 2017, the deficit in the trade account contracted to US$ 752 million from US$ 868 million in October 2016.

During the first 10 months of 2017, cumulative trade deficit increased to US$ 7,591 million from US$ 6,994 million during the corresponding period of 2016.

Export earnings increased by 14.1 % (y-o-y) to US$ 976 million in October 2017. This was largely due to higher earnings from textiles and garments (7.9%), tea (26.1%), spices (47.9%), food, beverages and tobacco (48.2%), rubber products (15.4%) and petroleum products (28.4%).

Import expenditure increased marginally by 0.2 % (y-o-y) to US$ 1,727 million in October 2017. This low growth was mainly led by lower imports in sugar (-75.3%), crude oil (-44.5%), and machinery and equipment (-12.7%).

Workers’ remittances decreased by 7.9% to US$ 5,518.2 million during the year up to October 2017 compared to the increase of 3.5% observed in the corresponding period in 2016.

xIndia is set to overtake the United Kingdom and France to become the world’s fifth largest economy next year, a report said Tuesday.

Currently ranked seventh, India will move up to fifth place in 2018 and vault to third spot by 2032, the Centre for Economics and Business Research, a London-based consultancy, said in its annual rankings.

The Indian economy hit a three-year low in the first quarter of the current financial year, after Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s snap decision in November 2016 to scrap high-value banknotes and following a tax overhaul.

Growth slumped to 5.7% for the three months ending June but recovered slightly to 6.3% for the quarter ending September.

The world’s growth will be dominated by Asian economies, including India, China and Japan.

The United States, the world’s largest economy, will be overtaken by China in 2030, the report forecast; adding India would take that spot “at some time in the second half of this century”.

AFP

The role of rules based multilateral trading system led by WTO has become more crucial in paving a level playing field for its members, in particular for small economies such as Sri Lanka, said Minister of Industry and Commerce Rishad Bathiudeen in his message to the 11th WTO (World Trade Organization) Ministerial Conference held from December 10-13 in Buenos Aires, Argentina.

“Slow growth in trade, challenges from the digital transformation, attracting FDI, level of unemployment, access to trade financing and sustainable development are some of the great challenges that many developing countries encounter today,” said Minister Bathiudeen and added: “The role of rules based multilateral trading system led by WTO has therefore become more crucial in paving a level playing field for its members, 

Depositors of CIFL who have been denied of their money with due interests at a press conference held at OPA observed that an integrated approach is being made to recover their money.

CIFL depositors’ Association President Vijaya Gunawardena said, “We already have had several discussions with the Central Bank on measures taken to retrieve depositor’s money from CIFL with the due interests.

“Originally we deposited large sums of money with the CIFL since it had the Central Bank’s license. From that initial deposit base of Rs 3.5 billion, they have invested Rs 1.2 million in Aspic Homes a subsidiary of CIFL. Aspic Homes has not paid our money back with the due interests to its mother company. Now the depositors who are denied of their finances are in the process of helping CIFL to recover that money from Aspic Homes”, he added.

“We received interests for our deposits up to 2013 and since then not a single cent has been paid to depositors,” Gunawardena stressed.

Dakshitha Bogollagama who is a Director of Citi Finance Company and an investor said an integrated approach is made towards recovering the due amounts of money from Aspic Homes.

It was said at the press-con that Bogollagama was in touch with investors from Singapore who are willing to invest money in the company once it startsed smooth sailing.

‘Citi Finance Corporation Limited’ Company has been commissioned in 1962 with the name; Industrial Finance Limited by Thudawe brothers.

In 2008 Industrial Finance Limited Company’s balance sheet showed a risk of Rs 400 million thus Aspic Group bought the company. At the time CIFL was a subsidiary of Aspic Group.

One of the leading industrial glove manufacturers in the world, based in Katunayake and Koggala has second thoughts about investing a further US$ 100 million and generating an additional 4,000 jobs in the country.

This is due to the recent imposition of ad hoc taxes such as excise levy on non-portable spirits (methanol) which is one the prime raw materials in industrial glove manufacturing.

“This move will certainly impede our expansion developments especially in the recently opened factory in the South as this is a clear violation of the BOI initial agreement,” an official from the company said.

“We entered Sri Lanka in 1992 as an exporter and registered under Board of Investment of Sri Lanka Law No 4 of 1978. Since our commencement in Katunayake, we have expanded to other industrial export processing zones in Sri Lanka, providing direct employment to over 6,000 and over 50,000 indirect dependents.”

“To date, the company has invested more than US$ 200 million and we have planned to invest in many more plants in the South and they were done on the assumption that the government will offer all support to help the investor.”

“This was clearly mentioned in the very first agreement we made in 1992 which says that all imports of plant, equipment, machinery and construction material, raw material and other material to be used for and by the enterprise for the sole purpose of the said business within the said zone shall not be liable for ANY import duty and shall not be subjected to ANY Customs or ANY other like restrictions.”

“This excise levy of Rs. 25 for methanol was originally introduced in the 2016 budget proposal. After continuous requests made by us, the levy was withheld by the Finance Ministry. But with effect from August 1, 2017, this levy was imposed again and subsequently was removed on August 22. However, once again this is imposed with an amended amount with effect from November 10, 2017. Recently the amount was once again amended on December 19, 2017.”

“By the imposition of this ad hoc tax we have been treated differently as a manufacturer as all other BOI companies are allowed to import all raw materials tax free for export purposes. We, like all manufacturers, have to compete in the world market and such levies of this nature will force us not to invest in Sri Lanka and look at another regional country.”

“We must also thank and highly appreciate Minster Malik Samarawickrama and Board of Investment Directors for the cooperation extended so far trying to remove this levy. We sincerely hope that in the coming days that they will be able to convince the Minister of Finance to remove such levies on BOI manufacturing companies.” 

Maliban Biscuits Manufactures (Pvt.) Ltd was feted with the ‘Prestigious Brand of Asia’ accolade by the World Branding Awards at an event held at Thailand recently.

The ‘Prestigious Brand of Asia’ award recognises business entities which have redefined the benchmarks in their respective fields through trust, image building, sustainability, goodwill, recall, Growth and innovation in the Asian market. Over 3,000 brands from 35 countries were nominated for the 2017-2018 Awards in multiple categories.

The key criteria which gave Maliban the edge over other competitors were the transformation by the company in embracing latest innovative solutions into the core business operations and the contribution towards the economy. Maliban was the Sri Lanka’s only FMCG company to win an accolade at the world Branding Awards this year.

Commenting on the recognition, Ravi Jayawardena, CEO, Sales & Marketing of Maliban Biscuits noted “The Award is a testament which reflects our strong commitment, dedication and goodwill we bring into the market that we operate in.”

“From our strategic planning to customer services, all our plans are drafted in a way that innovation and quality becomes the core enabler for all employees across all pillars.”

Malaysian Prime Minister Dato’ Sri Mohd Najib bin Tun Abdul Razak experiencing Dialog’s digital innovations in digital education, digital inclusion and the application of artificial intelligence for customer care, at The Dialog Iconic, in Colombo, during his recent state visit to Sri Lanka. Ministers Harin Fernando and Gayantha Karunathilaka and Dialog Axiata Director/Group CEO Hans Wijayasuriya are also present.

Picture by Sulochana Gamage

Samaposha, Sri Lanka’s favourite breakfast cereal, especially among children, has launched ‘Nutri Plus’ a new breakfast cereal for the whole family.

Samaposha Nutri Plus Kurakkan comes in two convenient pack sizes and is the ideal option for busy people who are interested in healthy foods to enrich their lives.

Samaposha Nutri Plus Kurakkan is manufactured by Plenty Foods, a fully owned subsidiary of Ceylon Biscuits (CBL) and the new formulation with Kurakkan resulting from extensive research, strengthens the company’s highly successful backward integration programme further.

The new formulation in Samaposha Nutri Plus includes corn, soya, finger millet, red rice and is pre-cooked. It contains protein, iron and fibre and is fortified with vitamins and minerals.

The focus on Kurakkan results in a wide range of benefits and helps those who wish to reduce weight and cholesterol and most importantly, control diabetes. Kurakkan makes bones stronger and improves digestion.

Shammi Karunaratne, Director and CEO of Plenty Foods said “We are excited about our new brand extension that will contribute significantly towards building a healthier nation. Samaposha Nutri Plus can be prepared as a cereal or in the form of ‘Aggala.’

Kurakkan in the product makes it palatable to both adults and teenagers and will help to make the population healthier. Our farmers too will benefit from the launch of a new product that will strengthen our outgrower system and support the farmer community.”

Plenty Foods has won several awards and recognition for providing a well-balanced, quality assured, wholesome, pre-cooked breakfast cereal, including a gold award at National Agribusiness Awards.

The brand Samaposha has also received Good Manufacturing Practices (GMP) certification as well as ISO 22000 and HACCP certifications which are hallmarks of quality. 

The Swadeshi Industrial Works PLC, the market leader in Sri Lanka for herbal personal care products, has sponsored the “Aloka Poojawa” of the historic Sabaragamuwa Maha Saman Devalaya and Dambadeniya Raja Maha Viharaya for the 16th consecutive year.

The illuminations were done under the theme; “Swadeshi Khomba Aloka Puja Sathkaraya”.

Swadeshi Chairperson Amari Wijewardene said Swadeshi being a Sri Lankan owned company, considers safeguarding the culture and traditional heritage of Sri Lanka by supporting such activities as this annual Aloka Pooja, a duty and also a debt the company owe towards mother Lanka.

She further observed, Swadeshi illuminates places of worship in the country for the benefit and ease of all worshippers and also with the intention of educating younger generation on the importance of safeguarding the country’s culture and heritage. The illumination is followed by a colourful cultural pageant which highlights Sri Lankan traditions and history. 

In 2013 the ‘Sri Dalada Maligawa’ of historic Dambadeni Raja Maha Viharaya, where the sacred tooth relic was kept and the ancient murals were renovated by Swadeshi Chairperson Amari Wijewardene to bring back its past glory.

Swadeshi also supports the Aloka Poojas of Kataragama Kiri Wehera, Ruhunu Kataragama Maha Devalaya, Devundara Sri Vishnu Devalaya, Redigama Ridi Viharaya and Keragala Raja Maha Viharaya annually. The pioneer and market leader in the herbal personal care category in Sri Lanka, The Swadeshi Industrial Works PLC, was incorporated in 1941. Among the pioneer brands of Swadeshi are Khomba Herbal, Khomba Baby, Rani Sandalwood, Rani Rose, Safeplus, Apsara, Perlwite, Lak Bar, Lady, Black Eagle (Perfume and After Shave), Khomba & Rani Shower Gel range and the one and only kids range “Little Princess”.

The company recently introduced Khomba Deo Fresh Soap which contains natural Margosa oil with Lemongrass. The new Khomba Deo Fresh soap takes away body odour and makes you feel refreshed and energized.

The company also manufactures and markets the top herbal soap brand Khomba Herbal and heritage beauty soap brand Rani Sandalwood. 

Samson Rubber Industries, the manufacturer and distributor of Lotus Tyres, has seen its sublime imprint of trust amongst Sri Lankans for many decades, and it honoured its sales agents and their family members with a domestic holiday recently.

There, the sales agents and their families basked themselves in the peace and luxury of the star class hotel, RIU – Ahungalle throughout two passionate days of exploration.

The sales agents who were dedicated in bringing Lotus Tyres to the doorstep of its customers leaving no space for ado while realizing sales targets, were victorious in grabbing this fabulous opportunity.

This was made available through a sales promotion programme which was organized to recognize their performance in due proportions.

The successful sales agents received certificates and souvenirs. The occasion was graced by the distinguished board of directors of Samson Rubber Industries and the Lotus Tyres team.

“We are very pleased to take this opportunity to appreciate our sales agents who were involved in a commendable service. We are prepared to initiate similar programmes even further to recognize our sales agents” said R.D.D. Abeythilake, Director of Samson Rubber Industries. Lotus Tyres has won hearts of customers island-wide under the tagline “Niyama Milata Niyama Durak” meaning, “Right mileage for the right price”. It has become a much-focused brand of tyres& tubes in recent times. Its transcending value for money is accompanied by maximum safety and quality.

The Lotus Tyres brand has a range that includes bicycle tyres and tubes, motorcycle tyres& tubes and three-wheeler tyres& tubes.

The annual customer loyalty programme of the Singer Sri Lanka, Kalmunai branch was held recently at the Kalmunai branch premises.

Singer Sri Lanka, Kalmunai branch Manager P. Nesakumar organized the programme.

The chief guest was M.R.M. Nizak, District Manager, Singer Sri Lanka, who inaugurated the sale of Singer's products at the event. Singer Sri Lanka, Sammanthurai branch Manager Ramees Hassan and Kalmunai Divisional Secretariat Samurdhi Head Quarter Manager A.R.M. Salih were the special guests at the occasion.

Research paper released on Thursday by tech giant Accenture revealed that artificial intelligence (AI) could add 957 billion dollar to the Indian economy by changing the nature of work to create better outcomes for businesses and society.

The report, ‘Rewire for Growth,’ estimates that AI has the potential to increase India’s annual growth rate of gross value added (GVA) by 1. 3 percentage points, lifting the country’s income by 15 percent in 2035.

www.uniindia.com

Fitch Ratings has affirmed the National Long-Term Ratings of the following banks: - NSB at ‘AAA(lka)’; Outlook Stable. BOC at ‘AA+(lka)’; Outlook Stable. DFCC at ‘AA-(lka)’; Outlook revised to Stable from Negative. People’s Bank (Sri Lanka) (People’s Bank) at ‘AA+(lka)’; Outlook Stable. Commercial Bank of Ceylon PLC (CB) at ‘AA(lka)’; Outlook Stable. Hatton National Bank PLC (HNB) at ‘AA-(lka)’; Outlook Stable. National Development Bank PLC (NDB) at ‘A+(lka); Outlook Stable. Sampath Bank PLC (Sampath) at ‘A+(lka)’; Outlook Negative. Seylan Bank PLC (Seylan) at ‘A-(lka)’; Outlook Stable.

The rating action follows Fitch’s periodic review of the large bank peer group. 

The Information and Communication Technology Agency of Sri Lanka (ICTA) stated that some 600 locations has been connected under the initial phase of free public Wi-Fi initiative with more than 245,000 registered members using the system.

This is a learning curve for us, ICTA, Director- Special Projects Kanchana Thudugala said adding that , “ICTA in association with the Finance Ministry, the Education Ministry and other relevant stakeholders will go for the second phase of the free public Wi-fi project ,where we will have much more bandwidth.”

Currently, the project has been conceptualized and ICTA is currently going through the procurement process in this regard.The second phase of the project is to be launched in the near future.

Five star hotels light up for Christmas: Taj Samudra; The Kingsbury; Hilton Colombo, Cinnamon Grand and Cinnamon Lakeside. Daily News Business will also take a break for Christmas and we will be back on December 28. Pictures by Shan Rambukwella

The overall rate of inflation as measured by NCPI on year on year basis is 8.4% in November 2017 and inflation calculated for October 2017 was 8.8% .

YoY inflation of food group reported for the month of November 2017 was 15.7% while that for non food group was 2.7%

Issuing National Consumer Price Index (NCPI), for the month of November 2017, Dr. Amara Satharasinghe, Director General of Census and Statistics, said that the Year on Year inflation based on NCPI has declined to 8.4% from 8.8% in October 2017.

The reported inflation for the month of November 2017 was mainly due to comparatively lower price levels prevailed in November 2016 particularly, prices of coconuts, rice and vegetables. Contributions to the inflation from food group and non-food group in November 2017 are 6.9% and 1.5% respectively, whilst contributions of these two groups to the inflation in November 2016 were 0.7% and 3.4% respectively, resulting headline inflation of 4.1% which reflect prevailed comparatively lower food prices in November 2016.

However, when compared to month on month changes, NCPI in November 2017 has increased to 126.4 from 124.8 reported in October 2017. This shows an increase of 1.6 index points or 1.3 percentage points in November 2017 as compared to October 2017.

This month on month change was due to the increases of expenditure value of food items by 0.95% and non-food items by 0.30% respectively.

The increase in expenditure value of food items was due to the price increases of coconuts, green chilies, vegetables, big onions, red onions, rice, eggs and tea dust. However, decreases in expenditure value in index were reported for fresh fish, banana, potatoes, papaw, limes, mangoes, dried fish, mysoor dhal and coconut oil.

The increase in expenditure value of non food items in November 2017 compared to the previous month was due to the expenditure value increases in groups of ‘Health’, ‘Miscellaneous Goods and Services’, ‘Recreation and Culture’, ‘Transport’, ‘Clothing and Footwear’, ‘Furnishing, Household equipment and Routine household maintenance’ and ‘Housing, Water, Electricity, Gas and Other fuels’. 

Novustech Transact Lanka (Pvt) Ltd have invested over Rs. 1.5 billion in 2017 and 2018 to install ATMS and wireless POSS machines in Sri Lanka.

Senior Vice President Directors, Lahan Gajasinghaarachchi, said that their first major project was the Peoples Bank’s Self Banking Centers (SSB Unit) that were created all over the country.

“This project a mini banking unit with tells that have the ability to deposit and disperse cash, paying utility bills and other services were included in an unit which operates 24 hours a day. We have completed over 100 SSB Units for the People bank and more would be created in 2018.” Novus SL have also made an investment of USD 7 million for Novus Transact Platform hosted at Dialog data center and the installed these self-service machines. In addition to SSB Unit additional 400+ ATMs, CDMs & Kiosk.

“Our command center too operates from world trade center office providing 24x7 call center, monitoring and reconciliation services. Since banks are unwilling to invest on acquiring infrastructure Novus business model of charging customers on monthly basis for only for the services obtained from them is gaining in popularity. Under our project Banks don’t have to invest in ATM machines and other expensive hardware.”

He said that bank surveys have indicated that most of the customers come to the banks to pay utility bails and banks prefer to see these bill paid online and through ATM’s. “Due to this this number of acceptance points for ATMs/POS not up to the demand.”

Our targets for 2018 are an additional 1,000+ self-service machines connected to Novus Transact Switch. We also want to create a country wide acquiring infrastructure encouraging more cards to be issued and more transactions to be processed in urban and rural parts.’

“In addition to ongoing banking projects we also handle the Online payment platform for LankaClear (live from 2017) terminals currently are connected to Novus Transact switch.”

Novus Technologies Pte Ltd is a company incorporated in Singapore in 2013 providing digital banking solutions, mobile payment solutions and Self-Service/POS Outsourcing services with focus on the APAC region.

The company is formed by professionals who spent their career working for world-class IT solution providers focusing on Asia Pacific region.

Fitch Ratings have revised DFCC’s outlook for both its International and National Long Term Ratings to ‘Stable’ from ‘Negative’ while affirming the ratings at B+ and AA- respectively.

The rating agency said that this outlook revision reflects their view that adverse effects on the bank’s credit profile from increasing risks in the domestic operating environment previously expected have reduced.

DFCC’s Viability Rating and the National Long-Term Rating capture its developing commercial banking franchise and still-high capitalisation levels relative to the peers.

DFCC’s Sri Lanka rupee-denominated senior debt is rated at the same level as its National Long-Term Rating, as the debentures rank equally with other senior unsecured obligations. The bank’s subordinated debt rating will move in tandem with the bank’s National Long-Term Rating.

Commenting on the latest rating review, Lakshman Silva – CEO, DFCC Bank, said. “This upgrade in DFCC’s rating outlook by Fitch closely follows a similar upgrade by S&P Global Ratings which clearly indicates that the rating agencies have recognized DFCC’s effort to keep the fundamentals strong. The positivity reflected by the upgrade of our outlook by both rating agencies gives us confidence to drive the bank to create more value for its stakeholders and press on with our plans for long term growth and stability.” 

Singapore Airlines (SIA) will be increasing flight frequency to Cape Town, South Africa, to meet growing travel demand.

Cape Town will be served with a daily flight via Johannesburg, up from the current four flights per week, with effect from 26 March 2018. The additional flights will complement SIA’s current daily service to Johannesburg and operate as SQ478 (Singapore—Johannesburg--Cape Town) and SQ479 (Cape Town--Johannesburg--Singapore).

SIA will operate flights to Cape Town and Johannesburg using its Airbus A350-900 aircraft. The aircraft seats 253 customers in three classes, with 42 in Business Class, 24 in Premium Economy Class and 187 in Economy Class.

The new flights are subject to regulatory approvals. Tickets will be made available for sale progressively through the various distribution channels. 

The Chance Sports of Borella the leader in the Sports Wear was rewarded at the annual Sramamibhani Award Ceremony held at BMICH. This award was given for their continuous effort of uplifting the standards of the sports in Sri Lanka and also for their kind effort of helping the needy sportsman and women.

Lasantha Samarasinghe receiving the award from Minister W.D.J Seneviratne Chief Organizer of Sramabhimani Award ceremony.

Economists and scholars are praising China’s commitment to encourage high-quality development, as the Central Economic Work Conference that concluded here Wednesday outlined the country’s economic work for 2018.

The three-day meeting unveiled Xi Jinping Thought on Socialist Economy with Chinese Characteristics for a New Era and stressed the importance of high-quality economic growth. As China has become indispensable to the world economy, the conference attracted immediate attention from both home and abroad.

ENOUGH TO BE PROUD OF

Growth is projected at 6.8 percent in 2017, exceeding initial expectations, the World Bank’s China Economic Update reported Monday.

Economic growth in China has remained strong in 2017, supported by rising household incomes and improving external demand, the report said.

“China has maintained its growth resilience and gained reform momentum. The authorities have undertaken a host of policy and regulatory measures aimed at reducing macroeconomic imbalances and limiting financial risks without notable impact on growth,” said John Litwack, World Bank Lead Economist for China.

“2017 has been a successful year for China,” he added.

“China is no longer the developing economy that relies on low costs but today it competes on the mid- to high-end markets and if it is to be successful it has to step up the reliance and quality of its products and production,” said Niklas Swanstrom, director of the Institute for Security and Development Policy.

“It is beyond doubt that China has invested the most of all states in green technology and the impact is very impressive,” he added.

China’s adoption of high-end development has a global dimension as China is pushing manufacturing as well as finance towards digitization, said Hans Hendrischke, chair of the business and economics cluster of the China Studies Center based in the University of Sydney.

“It is important to maintain the priority of stable and socially and environmentally sustainable economic growth,” said Hendrischke, also a professor of Chinese business and management. “For outside observers it is difficult to see how fast progress has been in these areas.”

GREAT EXPECTATIONS

“The 13th Five-Year Plan is the single most compelling five-year plan that China has ever made,” said Joe Kaeser, president and CEO of Siemens AG.

According to Xi, the year 2018 is the first year in implementing the development blueprint outlined at the 19th National Congress of the Communist Party of China in October, and also a crucial year in carrying out the 13th Five-Year Plan (2016-2020).

“The Belt and Road Initiative is a huge opportunity for China and the world and much has already been accomplished,” said Kaeser.

Proposed by China in 2013, the Belt and Road Initiative is aimed at building trade and infrastructure networks connecting Asia with Europe and Africa based on ancient land and maritime trade routes. It comprises the Silk Road Economic Belt and the 21st Century Maritime Silk Road.

“Siemens’ supply chain is related to structural reforms that are taking place in China, which generate new opportunities in high-end manufacturing such as automotive, aerospace and artificial intelligence,” Kaeser said.

“We predict that China’s economy will grow more than 6 percent in 2018 and 2019. For an economy that is as large as China’s, a 6-percent growth is still a very strong contribution to the world economy,” said Stefan Kooths, director of Kiel Institute for the World Economy Forecasting Center.

China Business News

 Sri Lanka Telecom (SLT), the country’s leading Telecommunication provider proudly announces the much awaited launch of its calendar for the upcoming year. Continuing its reputation as one of the most coveted corporate collectables in Sri Lanka, the SLT launched its 2018 calendar under the theme “Connected Lifestyle of Sri Lanka”.

Since 2003, the SLTis at the forefront of producing calendars and complimentary items that provide a gamut of rich content on culture, biological diversity and heritage of Sri Lanka.

The SLT calendar has also become an important and most valued item amongst collectors due to its unique artistic value and creativity. Each year, SLT produces these calendars under the main theme “Preserving Heritage for Tomorrow’, with sub-themes.

These themes are selected after much research and study into the subject areas and calendars are produced with the help of key resource persons in the related fields that ensure credibility of the information provided by these calendars.

The main aim of this year’s calendar and complimentary items is to raise awareness among the general public on the contribution and role of telecommunication services in developing the nation, its economy and connecting lifestyles over the last 160 years.

The calendar showcases the evolution of the telecommunication service in Sri Lanka with the phone units used over the last 160 years (1857–2017) and various applications of the telephone service in day to day life and in the industry.

In 1858, the first electrical telegraph circuit was established in then Ceylon between Galle and Colombo which eventually enabled people to connect with each other.

The very first telephone lines were installed by the Oriental Telephone Company in 1881 and with growing interest, in 1896, the government of Ceylon purchased the Company along with its fifty-six subscribers and it was assigned under the Department of Post and Telegraph.

The early history of thriving coffee and vast tea plantations would not have been a reality without telecommunication services that not only served the interests of colonial administrators, traders and merchants but also proved of significant value to the establishment of railways and the systematic connecting of state offices; helping to improve the efficiency of public services.

SLT calendar 2018 was prepared with the valuable contribution of veterans in the field including Prof. Saman Chandra Ranasinghe, Department of Languages and Cultural Studies, Faculty of Humanities and Social Sciences, University of Sri Jayewardenepura, Dr. Praneeth Abeysundara, Senior lecturer, Department of Anthropology, Faculty of Humanities and Social Sciences, University of Sri Jayewardenepura, Raveendra Withanachchi, Demonstrator, Faculty of Graduate studies, University of Sri Jayewardenepura, Eng. Lakshman Balasuriya, Rtd. Deputy Chief Officer, Sri Lanka Telecom and artists Pulasthi Ediriweera, Prasadani Kumari, Gamini Abeykoon and Aruna K. Gamage.

Sri Lanka Malay Association launched a revised version of ‘Resipe Makanan Melayu’, which is a Recipe Book on authentic Sri Lankan Malay Recipes. The event was graced by Thalatha Athukorala, Minister of Justice and Foreign Employment as Chief Guest.

The Book was sponsored by Knorr of Unilever Sri Lanka, with the integration of their unique Knorr range of products. Sri Lanka’s premier financial institute, which is the Bank of Ceylon was also a co-sponsor of the publication. The Recipe Book is a full color, A4 size complete with hard cover and designed as a coffee table concept book. Diana Rahaman, Chairperson of the Women’s Affairs Committee, who initiated the effort stated that, all recipes are shown with photos of the finished dishes as well. 

The Securities and Exchange Commission of Sri Lanka (SEC) at its 394th and 395th meetings held on August 4 and August 14, 2017, having deliberated on the adequacy of the current Listing Rules of the Colombo Stock Exchange (CSE) relating to the enforcement procedures applicable to listed public companies decided to adopt a more stringent policy of enforcement, the Colombo Stock Exchange informed its members through a circular.

In this regard, by way of letter dated December 8, 2017, the SEC has approved the amendments to the ATS Rules which facilitate the trading of such BASEL III compliant debt securities.

The SEC has required that investment in BASEL III compliant debt securities in both the primary and secondary markets is limited to ‘qualified investors’ set out in detail in its website. 

Nations Trust Bank (NTB) is to undertake a rights issue of 40,105,614 ordinary non-voting convertible shares in the proportion of four shares for every 23 held as on January 12, 2018, subject to approval by the CSE and shareholders, the bank said in a stock exchange filing. The rational to issue non-voting shares with a conversion option, as opposed to another class/type of security is, in its efforts to raise capital to meet regulatory requirements, to augment the anticipated balance sheet growth, NTB said.

Non-voting shares would give the bank the ability to source full subscription from all shareholders for the rights issue despite the restrictions placed by the Central Bank on shareholders carrying voting rights, the bank said. 

Fitch Ratings has assigned Bank of Ceylon’s (BOC, AA+(lka)/Stable) proposed Sri Lankan rupee-denominated Basel III-compliant subordinated unsecured debentures a final National Long-Term Rating of ‘AA(lka)’.

The debentures, totalling up to Rs 8 billion are to have maturities of five and eight years and carry fixed- and floating-rate coupons. The bank plans to use the proceeds to support its loan book expansion and to strengthen its Tier II capital base. The debentures are to be listed on the Colombo Stock Exchange.

The debentures are to qualify as Basel III compliant regulatory Tier II capital for the bank and include a non-viability trigger upon the occurrence of a trigger event, as determined by the Monetary Board of Sri Lanka.

The final terms indicate that the notes are subject to temporary or permanent write-down as determined by the Monetary Board of Sri Lanka and can be partially or fully written down upon the occurrence of a trigger event. There are no equity conversion provisions in the terms. The final rating follows the receipt of documents conforming to information already received and is in line with the expected rating assigned on October 26, 2017.

The year 2018 looks to be a year of good economic growth around the globe, according to PricewaterhouseCoopers. Global growth is projected to reach 3.7% in purchasing power parity terms next year.

This will be the most rapid expansion of global growth, measured by this metric, in 7 years, the accountancy and professional services firm’s forecasted in its report Monday, news outlets reported.

Unfortunately, PwC’s forecasts are not so bright for the UK. Unemployment across the Group of Seven countries is predicted to reach its lowest level in 40 years below the 5% line. GDP growth is expected to decline from 6.8% to 6.5% in China next year.

Globally, GDP is forecast to reach 3.7%. The US, France and Germany should come in at levels between 2% and 2.5% with Britain only expected to demonstrate a GDP of 1.4%.

PwC said that, for the first time since 2010, it is revising its global growth forecast upwards, bolstered by a robust cyclical recovery in the eurozone and stronger growth in the US.

“We expect global economic growth to be broadly based in 2018, rather than dependent on a few star performers,” said Barret Kupelian, senior economist at PwC.

Even though both the UK and China are expected to show slower growth in the next twelve months, the global economy is expected to bloom in 2018. “Generally, we expect monetary policy to somewhat tighten in the G7, reflecting closing output gaps in some advanced economies and stable inflation expectations,” PwC said.

The firm sees GDP growth in the US picking up from 2.2% this year to 2.4%. It sees French growth rising from 1.8% to 2%. German growth is seen steady at 2.3%, while growth in China slows from 6.8% to 6.5%.

The Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development reported late November that the global economy in 2018 is on pace to have the best year of growth since 2010, which was the snapback year after the Great Recession.

Economists at Bank of America Merrill Lynch said: “The global economy is in the midst of a miniboom that started in mid-2016.”

They expect “solid” 3.8% global growth next year, up from 3.7% this year, with most major economies growing at or above potential.

Their counterparts at Barclays are even more bullish, anticipating that the “self-enforcing economic cycle” will deliver 4% global growth next year.

The International Monetary Fund said recently that annual global growth of 4% or higher was in fact fairly common in the pre-crisis years.

Sri Lanka is placing its name on the global map as a sought after destination by various international news feature reviews, as Eurasia review mentioned Sri Lanka as the most sought after destination in Asiawith reference to the 2018 Virtuoso Luxe –Australian report.

According to the Virtuoso Report Sri Lanka is becoming one of the most popular global destinations and emerging destinations from the key findings of the 2018 Virtuoso Luxe – Australian edition report.

Sri Lanka Tourism has reaped the fruits of its effort to promote Sri Lanka across the globe by winning several awards as an upcoming destination this year, as Asia’s leading adventure tourism destination, Asia’s leading destination at the World Travel Awards, becoming the best long – haul destination at the family traveler awards held in UK, and also was voted as finalist for culture and holiday destination category at the travel bulletin star awards which was held recently in London. These were a few of the endorsements which Sri Lanka won for its holiday friendly atmosphere in par with the ongoing peace process in the country, declaring the country as a safe country to travel. Sri Lanka also has been featured on the National Geographic channel, Lonely Planet and many other international channels and also on social media platforms.

Eurasia review is a news and analysis journal which is wide spread over several continents including South Asia, Europe and Latin America, Russia, and North Africa. It covers news, business, social, entertainment and environmental stories from across the globe. Being featured in international news journals gives Sri Lanka a global recognition as a traveler friendly destination which has so much to offer and explore and official from Sri Lanka Tourism said.