Analysis

Retail becomes one of Sri Lanka's fastest-growing sectors
OBG
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Despite a significantly smaller consumer base than in neighbouring India, the retail sector in Sri Lanka has recorded formidable growth in recent years. This is the result of strong macroeconomic fundamentals, rising incomes, high levels of household expenditure and shifting consumer trends. Retail space in shopping malls is in critically short supply, while a burgeoning e-commerce segment is slated…

Analysis

Major investments in Sri Lanka's ports get under way
OBG
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The Port of Colombo stands today as one of the busiest and most competitive in the region, after years of expansion carried out in partnership with the private sector. The private sector will remain a critical pillar of future port expansion, with the ongoing Colombo Port Expansion Project (CPEP) managed by the Sri Lanka Port Authority (SLPA) expected to see a number of private contractors and management…

Analysis

Sri Lanka's new government can take advantage of recent infrastructure projects
OBG
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After the election of President Maithripala Sirisena in January 2015, the spending habits of former President Mahinda Rajapaksa’s government have come under increased scrutiny, with efforts to improve transparency being a critical priority for the new administration. President Sirisena ran on a platform of confronting corruption, which at the time took the form of official investigations into contracts…

Analysis

Operations overhaul should lead to higher profits for SriLankan Airlines
OBG
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National carrier SriLankan Airlines (SLA) has struggled in recent years as a result of rising operating costs, allegations of corporate mismanagement and lobbying by local vested interests. The new administration of President Maithripala Sirisena is hoping to address these issues with a comprehensive restructuring of the company’s portfolio, which could return the airline to profitability over the…

Analysis

Investment is set to receive a boost from Sri Lanka's National Agricultural Policy
OBG
plus

Although the agriculture sector has been central to Sri Lankan livelihoods and cultural identity for centuries, it has suffered in recent years from overlapping and sometimes contradictory government policies prone to changing with new political administrations. Of particular concern is the lack of public investment in mechanisation and technological innovation. This has translated into weak labour…

Analysis

Tea remains a vital agricultural asset and contributor to Sri Lanka's economy
OBG
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As Sri Lanka’s largest export earner after textiles and its most significant agricultural commodity, tea remains a major economic growth contributor, despite struggling to maintain profits in a time of falling global commodities prices and rising international competition. Home to the internationally recognised and sought-after Ceylon tea, Sri Lanka has benefitted from high-quality black tea exports…

Analysis

More demand for high-end housing brings rewards for contractors in Sri Lanka
OBG
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Despite a slight slowdown in building activity in Sri Lanka in 2015 – due primarily to uncertainty around presidential and parliamentary elections in January and August, respectively – rising demand for residential real estate points to long-term growth in the construction sector in the coming years. In a report released in November 2015, Asia Securities, a Colombo-based equities brokerage, cited…

Analysis

Upscale apartments gain in popularity on the Sri Lankan real estate market
OBG
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As of late 2015 Sri Lanka’s Western Province made up just 6% of the country’s total land area, but was home to 28% of the population, according to the Ministry of Megapolis and Western Development (MMWD), which was formed in mid-2015. Patali Champika Ranawaka, the minister of megapolis and western development, told local media in December 2015 that the government anticipates that the population…

Analysis

Sri Lanka tourism prepares for future growth on the back of recent influx of Chinese visitors
OBG
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One aim of Sri Lanka’s is to attract 2.2m tourists in 2016, an increase of 22% on 2015, according to the Sri Lanka Tourism Development Authority (SLTDA). Achieving this goal will require growth from a handful of key foreign markets, including India, Pakistan and some Gulf countries. Arguably more important than all of these, however, is China. Over the past five years Chinese tourists have travelled…

Analysis

Sri Lanka's government makes rapidly expanding cruise tourism a priority
OBG
plus

In early October 2015 the Sri Lanka Tourism Promotions Bureau (SLTPB) announced that the nation planned to make a major investment in cruise tourism, which has been an increasingly important source of visitor arrivals in recent years. The government’s development initiative, known as the Cruise Tourism Marketing Plan, aims to turn the cruise segment into a top-five source of tourist revenues for…