Arpico Insurance in Rs. 79.5 m IPO

Arpico Insurance Ltd., will list on the Colombo Stock Exchange with a Rs. 79.5 million IPO, up for grabs from tomorrow.
The Company will issue 6.63 million shares at Rs. 12 each.
The CSE has approved in principle for the listing of Company shares on the Diri Savi Board. Official opening is 11 December whilst public can begin subscription from 2 December. Managers to the issue are Arpico Ataraxia Asset management. Once the IPO is completed it will be the 294th listed firm.

J.L. Morisons rewards top performers at 75th jubilee celebrations

J.L. Morison Son & Jones (Ceylon) PLC, (JLM), a company trusted by Sri Lankans for its portfolio of well-established consumer brands recently celebrated its 75th Diamond Jubilee Anniversary and Awards Night at a gala event at the picturesque Eagles Lakeside banquet hall.
From humble beginnings as a fully Sri Lankan owned company, JLM has today, with seven decades of experience and working relationships in the country, evolved into a multi-channel business poised for growth under the aegis of local conglomerate, Hemas Holdings PLC.
“This 75th anniversary is a major milestone for our company,” said JLM Managing Director Trihan Perera. “Much has changed throughout the years, but our significant growth is a testament to our focus on providing exceptional products to our consumers. We are proud of what we have accomplished and excited to celebrate this momentous occasion with our employees as we step into the future,” he added.
The Awards Night, held in conjunction with the Anniversary celebrations, was part of the Company’s efforts to recognise top team members who, by their passion, engagement and motivation, have driven higher business performance and customer satisfaction throughout the year.
“This year, more top performers than ever, were rewarded across the Group. The commitment of JLM employees is impressive. Today we recognise and reward our own trail-blazers who excelled in outstanding performance,” Perera said.
Present at the event was the Senior Management of the parent company Hemas Holdings PLC which included Husein Esufally, Chairman and Steven Enderby, Group CEO. Also participating in the celebration were the Board and Management of JLM.
Top achievers who excelled in their sales performance were selected as winners from divisions including Pharmaceutical Distribution and Manufacturing, OTC and Consumer, and Agro.
Galle Drugs Store received two awards for its contribution towards pharmaceutical distribution and pharmaceutical manufacturing distribution.
In the OCT and Consumer division, Himal Irantha and Susith Wijayawardana received Star Awards for Sales and Brands categories respectively, while M.T. Thilina Peiris was adjudged the Consumer Distributor Winner.
Amila Pushpanwan, Driver – Stores received the special Star Service Award for his exemplary service and true example of showcasing the company’s values.
Commenting on the occasion Perera said, “The Awards we presented are to inspire as well as to congratulate and thank our staff for a job well done over the last twelve months which created both an element of competition as well as team spirit.”
J.L. Morison Son & Jones (Ceylon) PLC (JLM) is a fully owned subsidiary of Hemas Holdings PLC, a diversified conglomerate with a focus on four key sectors namely; healthcare, fast moving consumer goods, transportation and leisure.

Thinking about Maithripala Sirisena ?

Rs. 767 m Anilana Hotels’ Rights Issue oversubscribed

Anilana Hotels and Properties PLC’s Rights Issue worth Rs. 767 million closed yesterday after being fully subscribed, attracting applications over and above the number offered under the rights.
The Rights issue offered Ordinary Shares in the ratio of two shares for every seven shares held by the registered holders of Ordinary Voting Shares in the Company at an issue price of Rs. 7/- per ordinary voting share. The Company offered 109,624,114 Ordinary Voting Shares, making it a total 494 million shares. The Offer closed yesterday, raising Rs. 767 million partly to finance the balance construction of Phase-I of the Dambulla hotel and to retire approximately Rs. 167 million of existing debt.

Chairman Peter Amerasinghe said that Anilana Hotels and Properties PLC will continue to investment in expansion and debt restructuring to improve its financial position and will actively streamline cost structures by benchmarking best practices from within and outside the country. In addition, Anilana will focus on continuous staff training and development to achieve a high level of service which would be a hallmark of its resorts in Sri Lanka.

Anilana Passikuda
Anilana is one of Sri Lanka’s youngest and brightest hospitality brands, already enjoying positive recognition from guests around the world and is a collection of unique and stylish resorts, designed to present Sri Lanka at her most picturesque and beautiful. Anilana operates as a luxury brand, focused on providing a memorable experience, with each resort providing authentic and delicious food, a discrete, relaxing time, as well as luxurious accommodation. Two hotels are currently in operation, another hotel and several villas are under construction and additional projects are in the pipeline, capitalizing on the vast land bank which has been selectively acquired over many years.
Anilana-Pasikuda, the first resort, opened in May 2013, with Anilana-Nilaveli opening to the public in April 2014.Both hotels have already received positive acclaim from industry specialists, the local community, international visitors, those in the diplomatic community and even from European royalty who have enjoyed the time spent at the hotels. Anilana aspires to be recognized as one of the top hospitality brands in the country in the next five years.
Anilana-Damublla and Anilana Villas-Panichchankerni are due to open in the latter part of 2015. The company also plans on developing 3 more Resorts in the east coast and also start a joint venture development in the city of Colombo.

LG partners with Google in 10-year patent deal

LG Electronics of Korea has tightened its ties with Google in a patent cross-licensing agreement that is set to last for at least a decade. In a sign that LG and Google are tightening their Android alliance, the two companies have announced a deal to enter into a “long-term patent cross-licensing agreement” covering both existing and future products.

In a statement released on LG’s website, the Korean company confirmed that the agreement would cover “a broad range of products and technologies” and would apply to all existing patents as well as patents filed over the next 10 years – a significant timeline in terms of product releases.
In a statement, Executive Vice President and Head of LG Electronics Intellectual Property Centre, J.H. Lee joined Google in praising the partnership, saying it would build on a long-standing alliance between the two companies. He said: “LG values its relationship with Google and this agreement underscores the commitment of both companies to developing new products and technologies that enhance consumers’ lives.”

Google’s Deputy General Counsel for Patents, Allen Lo said: “We’re pleased to enter into this agreement with a leading global technology company like LG. By working together on cross-licenses like this, we can focus on bringing great products and services to consumers around the world.”
The cross-licensing with Google is a significant win for LG, not just in terms of strengthening ties with the company behind its mobile OS, but also as a sign of strength in the ever present market battle to retain its position as the world’s number one brand.
As for Google, the company is happy to further strengthen its bond with a key manufacturing partner – a brand that not only utilises Android across a broad range of devices, but one that also partnered closely with the US company in the past for the development of the Nexus 5.
Abans is the sole agent for LG electronics and home appliances in Sri Lanka.

Sri lanka Politics bites off Rs. 126 b from stock market value in two days

•  Colombo Bourse falls into oversold region

•  ASI slipped by 295.08 points or 4% and S&P SL20 by 3.6%

•  Equities remain

attractive as market PE drops from 14.7x to 14.1x within last two days
Shocking political developments and apparent instability have wiped off Rs. 126 billion from the Colombo stock market during the past two market days.
The market capitalisation of the Colombo Stock Exchange (CSE) on Thursday was Rs. 3.199 trillion, whereas yesterday it had dipped to Rs. 3.073 trillion, reflecting a staggering Rs. 126 billion loss in value.
On Friday, when the defection of SLFP Secretary General and Health Minister Maithripala Sirisena to become presidential candidate of the common Opposition shocked the country, the market lost Rs. 55 billion and yesterday a further Rs. 71 billion was wiped off.
The loss would have been greater as the fall in early morning trading was steep, but renewed buying brought stability and recovery.
“Political uncertainties pushed the equities market deep into the red on Monday as the ASI witnessed the highest intra-day drop in 15 months,” Lanka Securities said.
The All Share Index lost 226.31 index points (3.1%) in the morning session but recovered during the latter half and closed at 7,235.25, shedding 166.37 index points or 2.25%, the broker added.
The 20-scrip S&P SL index slipped by 82.32 index points or 1.99% to close at 4,044.94.
“During the last two sessions, the ASI slipped by 295.08 index points (-3.9%) while the S&P SL20 index declined by -3.6%,” Lanka Securities said.
With this decline, market PE dropped from 14.7x to 14.1x within last two days, it added.
Despite the drop, the ASI remains positive, having given a 22% year-to-date return and the S&P SL 20 Index up 24%.

Rupee forwards end weaker on political uncertaintyReuters: Rupee forwards ended weaker on Monday due to importer dollar demand, though moral suasion by the Central Bank prevented any fall, while political uncertainty weighed on the currency after the president declared snap polls. Former Health Minister Mithripala Sirisena said on Friday he would contest against President Mahinda Rajapaksa in the 8 January snap presidential poll. Since the poll announcement, six other legislators have defected. Dealers said the rupee is likely to remain weak due to the political uncertainty and rising seasonal imports. The spot currency ended steady at 131.00 per dollar. Three-day forwards, or spot next, which fell to 131.40 during the day, ended at 131.25/50, little changed from Friday’s close of 131.25/30 per dollar. Dealers said the Central Bank capped the three-day forwards at 131.25. The four-day forwards, active due to the Central Bank’s moral suasion, according to dealers, ended at 131.45/60 per dollar, compared with Friday’s close of 131.35/40. They said exporters and banks were reluctant to sell dollars on expectation the currency would weaken further. Overseas investors net bought Rs. 457.8 million worth of Government securities for the week ended 19 November, but they have sold a net Rs. 39.1 billion ($298.5 million) in the eight weeks through 19 November, data from the Central Bank showed.

Some analysts linked the bearish sentiments during the past two market days to fears over change of regime and what they perceived as an end to continuity of market-friendly policies. However, this fear was dismissed by others noting that a UNP-backed regime will be pro-growth, hence the sell off was unwarranted.  Independent analysts maintained that the market was reacting to neither of the possibilities but the dip reflects investor comfort zones have been challenged due to recent developments.
Yesterday’s price declines in counters such as John Keells Holdings (closed at Rs. 249.00, -1.7%), Carson Cumberbatch (closed at Rs. 426.20, -5.3%), Dialog Axiata (closed at Rs. 12.60, -3.1%) and Nestle Lanka (closed at Rs. 2,111.00, -2.1%) affected the index performance.
Out of 280 counters, 235 declined, 20 advanced while 25 remained unchanged. Cash map marginally inclined to 39% from 34%. 16 counters touched 52 week low price levels.
Foreign investors closed as net buyers for 13 days in a row with a net inflow of Rs. 100 m worth of equities. Foreign participation was 7%. Net foreign inflows were seen in Hemas Holdings (Rs. 41 m), Commercial Bank (Rs. 24 m) and Sampath Bank (Rs. 20 m) while net foreign outflow was mainly seen in People’s Leasing & Finance (Rs. 5 m).
Daily market turnover was Rs. 1.7 b. Laugfs Gas topped the turnover list with Rs. 391 m underpinned by a single crossing of 8.8 m shares at Rs. 43. The crossing represented 22% of the total turnover. Access Engineering and People’s Leasing & Finance were the next best contributors to turnover with Rs. 85 m and Rs. 56 m respectively.
Further, 0.3 m shares of Hemas Holdings changed hands in a single crossing at a price of Rs. 73. Aggregate value of crossings represented 24% of the total turnover.
Subsequent to the listing of new shares from the rights issue, Acme Printing & Packaging counter-declined to Rs. 11.20 during the day but managed to close at Rs. 11.90 (-4.8%).
Shares of Access Engineering, People’s Leasing and Finance and Union Bank were traded heavily during the session.
Most of the banking sector counters except Amana Bank declined during today’s trading session. Amana Bank closed at Rs. 5 without a change. Price declines were recorded in National Development Bank (closed at Rs. 250, -0.6%), Hatton National Bank (closed at Rs. 193, -3.0%), Commercial Bank (closed at Rs. 167.10, -4.5%), DFCC Bank (closed at Rs. 215, -2.7%), Sampath Bank (closed at Rs. 233, -0.6%), Nations Trust (closed at Rs. 94, -1.9%), HDFC Bank (closed at Rs. 65.10, -4.8%), Union Bank (closed at Rs. 24.80, -4.3%), Sanasa Development Bank (closed at Rs. 90, -2.0%), Seylan Bank (closed at Rs. 94, -2.1%) and Pan Asia Bank (closed at Rs. 23.50, -6.0%).
Reuters reported that Lankan stocks fell more than 3% to a four-week low as speculation that more ruling party legislators would cross over to the Opposition added to the political uncertainty and spooked investors.
After falling over 3% in early trade, the main stock index ended 2.25% weaker at 7,235.25, its lowest close since 28 October, and its biggest single-day fall since 28 August 2013.
“There was panic selling in the morning and margin calls also came on negative sentiment due to political uncertainty,” Reuters quoted Dimantha Mathew, Manager – Research at First Capital Equities Ltd., as saying.
“Nobody expected political uncertainty of this magnitude (and) the Opposition to be in full force with lot of defections, especially high-ranking Ministers.”
Already, seven legislators, including the Health Minister have defected from Rajapaksa’s ruling coalition.
Stockbrokers and research analysts said some retailers were selling their stakes on fears that a change in the political leadership could be highly volatile to the market, while others remained optimistic about the change.
“President Rajapaksa’s economic strategies were well received by the capital markets investment community and so if the status quo doesn’t change, the market trajectory also should not falter but continue with the growth trend,” Reuters quoted Danushka Samarasinghe, COO at Softlogic Stockbrokers Ltd., as saying.
“On the flip side, if expectation of the Opposition taking power is high on the back of promising better economic management, governance and transparency, the promise alone should bode well with the investment community and could propel further market growth.”
Continued foreign buying, low interest rates and hopes of better earnings pushed the Bourse into an overbought zone by 18 November, before it slipped on political woes. On Monday, the Bourse fell into the oversold region, Thomson Reuters data showed.

Sri lanka 2015 Budget gets Parliamentary passage with no crossover dramas

• 152 votes in favour; 57 against and 15 MPs including defectors absent

•  Weerawansa warns CBK will never permit handover of power to Ranil

•  Opposition flagsoncerns about debt burden and servicing

•  “The time has come to decide”: JVP Leader

•  UNP Harsha and Sajith say will not hurl leaders or soldiers to war crimes tribunals

By Ashwin Hemmathagama
Our Lobby Correspondent
President and Finance Minister Mahinda Raja-paksa’s 2015 Budget was comfortably passed in Parliament yesterday, with no crossover dramas to mar the process to allocate monies to meet recurrent, capital and other State expenses next year.

At 5:30 p.m. yesterday, the vote on the Third Reading of the Budget was taken by name and was passed with a majority of 95 votes.
The Government, which was beleaguered by defections late last week, received total 152 votes in favour.
There were 57 votes against from the UNP, TNA and NDP and 15 MPs were absent. In a noteworthy development, the seven MPs from the UPFA who defected to the Opposition were not in Parliament during the Third Reading of the Budget yesterday.President Rajapaksa’s former Health Minister Maithripala Sirisena, who declared himself the common Opposition challenger in the 2015 presidential race last Friday, was not present in the House since   he was travelling in Kandy and Anuradhapura..
Much-anticipated crossover dramas did not ensue, with both Government and Opposition members rumoured to be planning to pole-vault telling the House that the speculation was false.
Budget 2015 happens to be the 69th Budget of independent Sri Lanka and the 10th Budget of the United People’s Freedom Alliance Government. The Budget process for 2015 was initiated on 24 October, with the presentation of Appropriation Bill 2015 to Parliament. This was followed by the Budget Speech delivered by President Mahinda Rajapaksa on 24 October.

“Executive presidency changes people”: Maithripala  Common opposition candidate visits Kandy, gets Chief Prelates’ blessings  Wows to restore democracy, rule of law Says President Rajapaksa changed after war ended Executive Presidency ruins people – I am committed to abolish it: Sirisena  System has no parallel in the world in terms of amount of power given to individual President Mahinda Rajapaksa changed after the war ended and peace was achieved, his main opposition challenger, Maithripala Sirisena said yesterday. “The executive presidency ruins people and misdirects them. It is a problem with the system, irrespective of individuals,” Sirisena told journalists in Kandy yesterday. He said the SLFP had been agitating against the executive presidency since 1978. “As far as I know, the Sri Lankan executive presidency has no parallel in the world for the enormous amount of power it affords the holder of office,” Sirisena explained. The Opposition candidate explained that there had been discussions about the problems with the executive presidential system within the Government while he served. “All the ministers and MPs talked about it, whatever they might say in defence of the system today,” he revealed. Sirisena said if elected, he would towards restoring democracy and rule of law in the country. Since announcing his candidacy and deciding to leave the Government, Sirisena said he felt relieved. “I feel like an enormous pressure on me has lifted. My mind is clear now. I have an opportunity to work for the people and this country. This is making me happy – maybe that’s why I am starting to look better,” he quipped in response to a question by a journalist. Skipping Parliament yesterday, Maithripala Sirisena paid homage to the Sacred Temple of the Tooth in Kandy and invoked the blessings of the Chief prelates of the Malwatte and Asgiriya Chapters. Sirisena, who was accompanied by UNP Leadership Council Chairman Karu Jayasuriya, UNP MP Lakshman Kiriella and DNA MP Arjuna Ranatunga, held discussions with the Chief Prelate of the Asigiriya Chapter, Ven. Udugama Sri Buddharakkitha Thera yesterday. Thereafter he met with the Anunayake the Malwatte Chapter Ven. Niyangoda Vijithasiri Thera, since the Chief Prelate of Malwatte was overseas. Following his meetings, Sirisena told the media that he had received the blessings of both chapters. The former Health Minister said that as a Sinhalese Buddhist he had resolved upon taking up this challenge to contest the presidency, that he would strengthen reconciliation among Sinhalese, Muslims and Tamil people. Striking a note for religious freedom Sirisena pledged to ensure the freedom of faith and promote reconciliation between religious groups in Sri Lanka, a cause heavily championed by former President Chandrika Kumaratunga through her think-tank SAPRI. During his visit to Kandy, where there is a large Muslim population resident, Sirisena also visited a mosque and held discussions with devotees and religious elders in the premises. (DB)

The Budget has since moved into committee and debate stage, in order to meet the Legislative requirements to ensure the Government allocations are passed constitutionally in the House. The Committee Stage Debate commenced on 3 November to debate and discuss the respective estimates of heads of expenditure listed under each Ministry.
The Ministry of Finance and Planning, which happens to be the last of the ministries in this list, had a full-day debate prior to the vote-taking last evening in Parliament with the participation of all members.
Opening the debate, Opposition lawmaker Dr. Harsha de Silva charged that the Government was increasing debt and burdening the public.
“We all held in the House that the common man on the street does not feel the development. The next Government will continue the current development programs, but will add transparency and avoid unsolicited proposals. We have heard that Sri Lanka is issuing sovereign bonds. Who are the people buying these bonds? The money that gets stolen is reinvested in Sri Lanka on these bonds, a round-tripping by the politicians who have several passports and green cards,” said MP de Silva.
Clearing the recent allegations against him about supporting pro-LTTE diaspora after a widely-watched Al Jazeera ‘Inside Story’ segment, De Silva said that he had spoken against the Global Tamil Forum opinion on the show.

Reinvention of Unawatuna Beach Resort to Calamander Unawatuna Beach

Singapore-based Calamander group has invested 20 million rupees to build a longest glass fronted pool, spanning 25 metres as its next stage of the reinvention of Unawatuna Beach Resort to Calamander Unawatuna Beach.


“There is no beach now in Unwatuna due to sand filling to the other side of the beach, hence the company is innovating within the "affordable luxury" segment maintaining to be the best 4-star hotel in Sri Lanka,” Calamander chairman Roman Scott told LBO.


Roman Scott also was critical of the new Land Law which prevented foreigners purchasing land in Sri Lanka saying that the Foreign Direct Investment would suffer because of the new law.

“Some policies can appear a little arbitrary and foreigner unfriendly,” he said.

The pool has been fabricated with a bespoke 48mm glass wall that has been tempered and laminated which creates an aquarium-like effect, allowing swimmers to view the azure blue Indian Ocean and spectators to view swimmers doing their laps or splashing around with friends.

Calamander had bought Unawatuna Beach Resort just off Galle in Southern Sri Lanka for around one billion rupees in 2011 and rebuilt it by investing 350 million rupees.

Sri Lanka has seen a surge in hotel investments after a 30-year war ended in 2009 and tourist arrivals started to pick up.



The 30-year old hotel has since been re-named Calamnader Unawatuna Beach Resort and refurbished to provide 83 rooms of 4-star standard accommodation.Scott said the company aims to grow 20-25 percent compound annual growth rate a year.

“Since the company is so young we need to grow aggressively,” Scott said.

“I am a great believer in scale. And I recognize that I remain a small player in Sri Lanka and all our other markets, competing against bigger, well capitalized local companies that have a fifty year or more advantage over me.”

“Note our growth target of 20 percent is for the balance sheet i.e. assets, like a bank, and not on revenue or profits.”

“This reflects my banking background. Since everything is reinvested at this stage of growth, profits are secondary to asset growth and scale.”

Challenges

Sri Lanka has about 16,223 formal sector rooms in 2013, a 10.3 percent increase according to 2010 data.

On the other hand, the number of supplementary accommodation rooms increased from 5,895 to 7,373 which is a 25 percent increase.

However, there are numerous unregistered accommodation units providing room facilities to tourists in Sri Lanka, while home stay also operated same time.

Despite the increasing tourist arrivals and tourism related servicers, the, Island faces a lack of labour in the lower level and in the management.

Calamander also suffered from the same issue Scott said.

“We are short of good staff on the hotel and coffee bean side, across all levels.”

“The issue has been with us from the start, is the tight labour market, rising wages, and the limited experienced management talent pool to draw from, as the country continues to lose a lot of talent to work abroad,” he said.

Added to that he said that the recent ban on foreign companies purchasing land made it almost impossible to grow on the hotel side.

“I had major investment plans. Building hotels requires land. Running hotels requires people. Both are problems. It's as simple as that,” Scott said.

“The new land law makes it very difficult for foreigners to invest here in sectors like hospitality, which require land to build.”

“I understand, and approve, of preventing the purchase of non-productive, non-employment generating residential land for private villas being bought by foreigners.

“But the nation damages its interests if it prevented genuine, bona fide proper companies, who employ and lot of people and pay significance taxes as we do, from building and operating productive facilities like hotels, factories, healthcare facilities, BPOs, shops, on lands purchased for this purpose,” he said.

“FDI will suffer.”

The Land Bill adopted by Parliament last month prohibited foreign individuals, companies and locally incorporated firms with over 50 percent foreign ownership from buying land in Sri Lanka, a move the government said would curb tax evasion.

The new act will allow foreigners to acquire land only on a lease basis of up to 99 years with an annual 15 percent tax on the total rental paid up front.

“I remain highly committed to Sri Lanka and I still love the place and the people, however frustrating it can sometimes be building a business here,” Scott said.

“I do have more grey hair than before I invested! But investing here has become more difficult for the reasons I said above,” Scott said.

“Some policies can appear a little arbitrary and foreigner unfriendly.”

“I remain one of the country's best friends and most ardent champions. But Sri Lanka doesn't always treat its best friends as well as it should.”

Iconic luxury hotel and residences ITC Colombo One

• Indian giant’s maiden overseas foray in hospitality sector with $ 300 m investment

Ground breaking ceremony of ITC Colombo One yesterday: From left Colombo Mayor A. J. M. Muzammil, Indian High Commissioner Y.K. Sinha , Investment Promotion Minister Lakshman Yapa Abeywardena, Economic Development Minister Basil Rajapaksa, ITC Chairman Y. C. Deveshwar and Central Bank Governor Ajith Nivard Cabraal – Pic by Lasantha Kumara

The groundbreaking ceremony for the iconic luxury hotel and residences ITC Colombo One took place yesterday, in the presence of Minister of Economic Development Basil Rajapaksa, High Commissioner of India to Sri Lanka Y.K. Sinha and ITC Ltd. Chairman Y.C. Deveshwar. ITC is one of India’s largest multi-business enterprises.
Other dignitaries who were present at this auspicious occasion included Minister of Investment Promotion Lakshman Yapa Abeywardena, Mayor A.J.M. Muzammil, Central Bank Governor Ajith Nivard Cabraal and Army Commander Lieutenant General R.M. Daya Ratnayake.

Situated along the picturesque coastline overlooking the historic Galle Face Green, ITC Colombo One is likely to offer about 350 rooms in the first phase, more than 130 luxury residences, world-class banqueting and cuisine experiences for which ITC Hotels is globally-renowned, as well as retail and full service office space. Located between the oceanfront and the Beira Lake, the hotel will offer panoramic views of the Indian Ocean as well as the city of Colombo.

ITC Hotels is India’s largest luxury hotel chain and is a part of ITC Ltd., a leading diversified enterprise in India. With a market cap of over $ 45 billion, ITC’s businesses in India span FMCGs, hotels, paperboards, paper and packaging, agri business and Information Technology.

ITC Hotels is also internationally-acclaimed for its cuisine excellence with globally-awarded brands such as Bukhara, Dum Pukht and Dakshin and also for its indigenous spa brand Kaya Kalp. ITC Hotels has set global benchmarks in its services, integrating personalisation with state-of-the-art technology to deliver planet positive luxury experiences to its guests.

Commenting on ITC’s investment in Sri Lanka, ITC Chairman Deveshwar said: “India and Sri Lanka have shared a common heritage in the sub-continent and have generations of rich socio-cultural ties. ITC Colombo One will build on this heritage and strengthen our relations even further. ITC dedicates this project to Sri Lanka and to its future progress and prosperity. I am sure that this landmark hotel will add a jewel to the crown of Sri Lanka’s hospitality sector.”
With an investment outlay of around $ 300 million, this luxury hotel will be ITC’s maiden overseas foray in the hospitality sector.
ITC Colombo One is inspired by the rich cultural ethos of Sri Lanka, its history and architecture. Uniquely differentiated with superior environmental design, the hotel is slated to achieve a LEED Platinum rating. This echoes ITC’s triple bottomline approach to business which has inspired ITC Hotels’ credo of ‘Responsible Luxury’, an endeavour which is manifest in the highest rating accorded to green buildings in the world – LEED platinum, for all its luxury hotels – making it the ‘greenest luxury hotel chain in the world’.

CICT attracts first-ever 16,000+ TEU ship to Port of Colombo

The Port of Colombo delivered on its promise of establishing Colombo as the regional maritime hub when the brand new 16,000+ TEU ship MV MSC New York berthed at Colombo International Container Terminals Ltd. (CICT) yesterday.
The terminal is owned and operated by China Merchants Holdings International Company Ltd. (CMHI).

CICT General Manager Marketing and Commercial Tissa Wickramasinghe said: “Today is indeed a very proud day for the Port of Colombo, CICT and the local shipping industry. Having completed the construction and equipping of the South Harbour Container Terminal in a record time of 28 months and after being in operation for just over one year, CICT has managed to attract one of the largest vessels afloat to berth at our terminal.”

He added: “This was only made possible due to the extensive and aggressive marketing of the Port of Colombo, which had been done jointly with the Sri Lanka Ports Authority. In building new infrastructure to compete with other regional hub ports, it is necessary to implement changes like what we at CICT have achieved through very high standards of service delivery, productivity and customer service.”

He further stated: “The long-term success of CICT is tied up with the future success of the Port of Colombo and in that respect CICT will be using the access to the marketing resources of their parent company CMHI in achieving Colombo’s vision to be the regional maritime hub – our team at CICT is very excited about today’s event and look forward to bringing in more ships of this capacity on a regular basis in the near future.”
The New York is owned and operated by Mediterranean Shipping Company (MSC), which is the second largest container shipping company in the world and is also the number one customer by volume at CICT. This shipping line is represented in Sri Lanka through MSC Lanka, which has played a very crucial role in attracting these ultra large carriers to call the Port of Colombo.
The New York has the capacity to carry 16,650 TEUs and on completion of cargo operations at CICT, it will have a full load of 14,896 TEUs. The vessel is on its maiden voyage after having taken delivery from the shipbuilding yard in Korea on 20 October.
The vessel is operating on a service speed of 18 knots and burning 130 tons of fuel per day. This is indeed a far cry from the ships carrying 8,000 TEUs and burning almost double the fuel per day. The total complement of crew is only 23, thereby providing massive savings through the economies of scale.
Shipping industry sources were of the view that the state-of-the-art CICT facility being the only deepwater terminal in the whole of South Asia capable of handling the largest vessels afloat would be the major catalyst in achieving the much-cherished vision of the nation and the Port of Colombo of being the maritime hub of the region.

Foreign buying, Rs. 4 b turnover boost stock market

Reuters: Stocks rose to hover around a 3-1/2-year high on Thursday as investors picked up construction and banking shares on hopes of growth in the sectors, while foreign buying pushed the turnover to a six-week high.
Analysts said low interest rates and better earnings expectations kept investor appetite for risky assets intact.
Sri Lanka’s main stock index edged up 0.14% to 7,479.69, its highest closing level since 19 May 2011.
“There was lot of retail interest seen across the board after some time. We expect a psychological barrier around 7,500 levels especially on the big-cap shares,” said Dimantha Mathew, Manager, Research, at First Capital Equities Ltd.
Thursday’s turnover was Rs. 4.08 billion, well above this year’s daily average of Rs. 1.42 billion with foreign investors buying a net Rs. 1.11 billion ($ 8.48 million) worth of shares. The Bourse has witnessed a foreign inflow of Rs. 17.86 billion so far this year, exchange data showed.
Shares in Access Engineering Plc, which led the overall gain, rose 5.98% to Rs. 39 while People’s Leasing and Finance Plc rose 2.08% to Rs. 24.50.
Traders said hopes over a boost in vehicle leasing business for People’s Leasing and Finance Plc and Access Engineering being awarded a multi-million dollar contract for a new highway helped boost their share prices.
Analysts expect trading to be choppy in the near term due to the revised presidential poll schedule in January and a possible bottoming out of interest rates.
The country’s Central Bank has kept key policy rates steady for a ninth straight month, saying private sector credit growth was picking up and long-term lending rates were adjusting downwards.