Trade & Investment
From The Report: Sri Lanka 2017
View in Online Reader

As the country’s economy has liberalised and grown in recent decades, its trade volumes to developed markets and emerging ones have risen strongly. The country has established a name for itself as a leading exporter both of manufactured goods and traditional products such as tea and spices. A free trade agreement with India signed in 2000 has proved a major boon and is now being followed by a raft of other deals that should both boost export potential and open markets to foreign producers and investors.

This chapter contains interviews with Ban Ki-moon, Former Secretary-General, UN; Malik Samarawickrama, Minister of Development Strategies and International Trade; Lim Hng Kiang, Singapore Minister for Trade and Industry (Trade); Upul Jayasuriya, Chairman, Board of Investment; and Peter Wong, Deputy Chairman and Chief Executive, HSBC.

Articles from this Chapter

Overview

Game plan: A raft of new trade deals is set to unlock economic potential
OBG
plus

Positioned between west and east Asia, Sri Lanka sits on major maritime route between Europe and the Far East and its natural resources have made it a trading centre for millennia. As the country’s economy has liberalised and grown in recent decades, its trade volumes to developed markets and emerging ones have risen strongly. The country has established a name for itself as a leading exporter both of manufactured goods and traditional products such as tea and spices. A free trade agreement…

Viewpoint

United in values: Ban Ki-moon, Former Secretary-General, UN, on maintaining peace and achieving sustainable development goals
OBG
plus

Viewpoint: Ban Ki-moon, Former Secretary-General, UN The entire 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development is centred on respect for human rights. It aims to ensure that no one is left behind by reaching out to the most vulnerable and marginalised first. Sustainable Development Goal 16, on promoting peaceful and inclusive societies, provides the clearest example of this approach. Goal 10 on reducing inequalities, Goal 5 on gender and several other goals focus on inclusivity in education and economic…

Interview

Small land, big plans: Malik Samarawickrama, Minister of Development Strategies and International Trade, on deepening links with global markets
OBG
plus

Interview:Malik Samarawickrama What actions are needed to engage foreign direct investment (FDI) and broader trade? MALIK SAMARAWICKRAMA: Sri Lanka, being a small island nation, has to attract FDI in order to bridge the gap between domestic savings and investment so as to move to a high-growth trajectory for competition with other emerging nations. Expansion and liberalisation of trade enables the creation of larger markets, which will attract investment as well. Investment is long-term and…

Analysis

Attracting investment: New initiatives will refocus efforts to increase foreign direct investment
OBG
plus

After decades in which Sri Lanka underperformed in its substantial potential as a foreign direct investment (FDI) destination, there is a growing sense that change is afoot that will allow the country to make up for lost time. In January 2016 Malik Samarawickrama, the minister of development strategies and international trade, told the global press that Sri Lanka aimed to attract $5bn-6bn in FDI over the following three years, with the government focusing on policy consistency to attract…

Interview

Potential rewards: Upul Jayasuriya, Chairman, Board of Investment (BOI), on attracting investment and diversifying the economy
OBG
plus

Interview: Upul Jayasuriya What is being done to promote Sri Lanka as an investment destination to new markets? UPUL JAYASURIYA: Sri Lanka has traditionally relied on investment from Western nations; however, investment patterns have changed in recent years and the main focus is now on east Asia, as China, Malaysia, Singapore and India have emerged as leading investors in Sri Lanka. We therefore need to better understand these new economic partners and to convince them that we offer the best possible…

Analysis

Across the strait: Business stands to benefit from further cooperation with India
OBG
plus

With a population of 1.3bn and an economy growing 7%-plus each year, India is a good neighbour for Sri Lanka to have. Trade volumes between the countries have soared in recent years thanks to a beneficial free trade agreement (FTA). Talks have been ongoing about how to deepen this relationship while taking into account political and economic sensitivities. India ranked third in Sri Lanka’s export destinations in 2016, with outflows totalling $554m – down from $643m in 2015 due to falling…

Viewpoint

More than just a road: Peter Wong, Deputy Chairman and Chief Executive, HSBC, on the benefits to Sri Lanka of reviving ancient trading routes through modern infrastructure
OBG
plus

Viewpoint: Peter Wong To really understand what China’s Belt and Road initiative is all about, it’s best to stop thinking of it as being purely about “roads” and infrastructure “belts.” True, “Belt and Road” will involve building a lot of highways, railways, bridges and other infrastructure, which will act as the physical building blocks that will facilitate greater trade flows not just with China’s immediate neighbours, but also with Europe, Africa and the Middle East.…

Interview

Natural destination: Xavier Rolet, CEO, London Stock Exchange Group (LSEG), on developing ICT infrastructure
OBG
plus

Interview: Xavier Rolet What makes Sri Lanka an attractive destination for foreign ICT investors? XAVIER ROLET: For any investor in this sector, access to talent is of pivotal importance. Sri Lanka has been extremely effective at producing world-class engineering talent. The country’s education system is proving extremely effective at producing high-quality, highly employable graduates. Several of the national public education institutes offer sophisticated technical programmes, and these are…

Analysis

The bigger, the better: Plans are set to develop the greater Colombo region into an economic powerhouse
OBG
plus

Colombo, the biggest city in Sri Lanka by some margin, is the country’s economic engine. A range of large-scale projects are under way that are set to transform the city into a regional centre for business, trade and investment. These initiatives can be complied into the Western Region Megapolis plan, a blueprint for developing an area of 3600 sq km in and around the capital. Megapolis The concept of the Western Region Megapolis was first floated nearly three decades ago, with then-minister…