Unrest deals new blow to Thai tourism industry

BANGKOK, December 15, 2013 (AFP) - From backpacker districts to high-end hotels, more than a month of opposition protests in the Thai capital are taking their toll on the kingdom's tourism sector, with hundreds of thousands of travellers staying away.

Dozens of countries have issued travel warnings related to the mass street demonstrations against Prime Minister Yingluck Shinawatra, mostly advising people to exercise caution near the main rally sites.The political situation reduced the influx of inbound tourists in the month to mid-December by an estimated 300,000 people -- eight percent -- compared with the number expected, Yutthachai Soonthronrattanavate, president of the Association of Domestic Travel, told AFP.

Self care for all Dialog services now on a single app

Dialog Axiata PLC (Dialog), Sri Lanka’s premier connectivity provider, has launched yet another service innovation by enabling customers to manage their wide and varied Dialog service portfolio by means of a self-care mobile app.
The Dialog Self Care App opens up a whole new vista in digital experience to customers of Dialog as it empowers them with direct and online access to manage a vast array of mobile, digital television and broadband services at their convenience anytime and anywhere.

Janashakthi Insurance wins merit at NBQSA 2013

Breaking new ground in the ICT sector, Janashakthi Insurance plc won a Merit award in the In House Applications category at the recently held National Best Quality ICT Awards (NBQSA) at the Kingsbury Hotel.
The company received praise for the Janashakthi Document Management System (JDMS) which was developed in-house by their Software Development team.  Reflecting on the win, IT Assistant General Manager Thilak Vithanage said it was a night of firsts for the entire insurance sector. “This was the first time Janashakthi Insurance made an entry for the NBQSA ceremony. We are also the only insurance company in the sector to win this award. This is truly the best acknowledgment of the hard work put in by the Software Development team to ensure that we had an effective document managing system.”

Sri Lanka re-issues investment approvals on casino resorts

Dec 18, 2013 (LBO) - Sri Lanka has re-issued notices on tax concessions to three casino resorts with no mention of gaming being made, after initial investment approvals were withdrawn under fire.

The state has issued gazette notices for Lake Leisure Holdings by Australian gaming tycoon James Packer and local entrepreneur Ravi Wijeratne, Queensbury Leisure by Dhammika Perera, another Sri Lankan businessman and Waterfront Properties by John Keells Holdings.

Sampath Bank pioneers cardless cash ATM

Sampath Bank , the pioneer in introducing many innovations to the Sri Lankan banking industry, has launched its latest state-of-the-art banking facility, the ‘cardless cash ATM’ for  the first time in Sri Lanka.
This new facility will facilitate the customer to withdraw cash from ATMs without using an ATM debit card.
The first-ever ‘cardless cash ATM’ was launched yesterday at the head office of Sampath Bank under the patronage of Aravinda Perera, Managing Director, Sampath Bank.

The Colombo Stock Exchange new S&P Sri Lanka 20 index

The Colombo Stock Exchange (CSE) has announced the changes in S&P Sri Lanka 20 index constituents made by S&P Dow Jones Indices at the 2013 annual index rebalance as follows.
S&P Dow Jones Indices announced that effective from 23 December 2013 (after the market close of 20 December 2013), Sri Lanka Telecom PLC and Aitken Spence Hotel Holdings PLC will be removed from the S&P Sri Lanka 20 index as they no longer qualify for index inclusion. Replacements will be Lanka Orix Leasing Co PLC and The Lion Brewery Ceylon PLC.
The index includes the largest 20 stocks, by total market capitalization, listed on the CSE that meet minimum size, liquidity and financial viability thresholds.  The constituents are weighted by float-adjusted market capitalisation, subject to a single stock cap of 15%, which is employed to reduce single stock concentration.

Sampath Bank partners Janashakthi for bancassurance

Sampath Bank is proud to offer bancassurance products with a view to provide tailor-made insurance solutions to the Bank’s clientele. The bank has tied up with eight leading insurance companies in the country for the bancassurance partnership to provide motor policies, fire policies, marine policies and loan protection policies. The bank’s bancassurance partners are Sri Lanka Insurance Corporation Ltd., Ceylinco Insurance PLC, Union Assurance PLC, Janashakthi Insurance PLC, AIA Insurance PLC, Asian Alliance Insurance PLC and Allianz Insurance PLC. In addition to the above companies, Amana Takaful PLC will assist the bank in facilitating the customers in the Northern and Eastern Provinces.

Central Bank Governor Cabraal -mergers is way forward as big is better

By Uditha Jayasinghe
A tough-talking Central Bank Governor advocated bigger and better banks to propel Sri Lanka’s financial sector towards the Rs. 10 trillion mark by 2016 yesterday, outlining a raft of new measures for companies to undertake.
Deviating from his customary affable manner, Central Bank Governor Ajith Nivaard Cabraal was all business at the 2013 edition of the Bank Directors’ Symposium. Despite starting off with a quip on how most of the faces in the audience were also seen by him in the “rich list” of Sri Lanka, Cabraal went on to deliver his strongest message yet to the banking sector.
“Maintaining sound macroeconomic fundamentals are not just the Government’s business, it’s not only the Central Bank’s business, it is your business as well,” Cabraal told the movers and shakers of the banking world, emphasising that it was not that he did not want them to take credit for hard work, but to acknowledge it as a combined effort.
“Whenever a company does well, they will say ‘you know we have done extremely well, our people are very good, our staff is excellent,’ I’m also very good, nice pictures are put in… but the moment company hits a bad patch, it’s the Government – ‘Government has not done right, the macro fundamentals are not good, because of this we were not able to do that.’ Nobody ever acknowledges when they do well maybe the Government had a small part in doing that, maybe the other institutions had a part in fashioning the fundamentals to do that.

The Prince arrives CHOGM

The Duke of Cornwall Sir Charles Philip Arthur George and the Duchess of Cornwall Lady Camilla Parker Bowles arrived yesterday for the Commonwealth Heads of Government Meeting (CHOGM) 2013 beginning in Colombo today.
The Prince’s visit coincides with his 65th birthday yesterday. At a reception held last night he met a range of people from Sri Lankan society.  The garden at Westminster House, the venue for the party, hosted a small organic market, at which the Prince and Duchess viewed local produce and learn about farming in Sri Lanka.

Colombo to buzz Commonwealth Business today

The bustling yet peaceful Colombo will buzz trade and investments within Commonwealth and especially Sri Lanka starting today, with an unprecedented participation at the three-day influential Business Forum.

A record 1,500 delegates are expected to participate in the three-day Commonwealth Business Forum, which will be inaugurated by President Mahinda Rajapaksa today at the Cinnamon Grand Colombo.
Organisers told the Daily FT that as opposed to the original target of 1,000, which some doubted Sri Lanka would achieve, the final registered count is an impressive over 650 foreign delegates and over 750 local delegates.
The premier business event in the Commonwealth bringing together heads of government, ministers and top business leaders will this year focus on the theme of ‘Partnering for Wealth Creation and Social Development: The Commonwealth, Indian Ocean and SAARC’.

Luxury yacht ‘Sea Dream II’ makes maiden call to Colombo

Much-awaited by travel enthusiasts in the region looking for a unique yachting experience but not cruising, unlike other, an enchanting journey layered with exotic comfort, the luxury yacht ‘Sea Dream II’ arrived in Colombo last morning as part of her Asian voyage ‘Passage to the Far East’.
She will now go onto Singapore and the Far East, offering 18 unique voyages around the region. The Sea Dream Yacht Club is considered ‘The World’s Best’ by acclaimed critics worldwide as well as amongst the seagoing fraternity.

Honeymoon over for Sri Lanka tourism?

World’s leading tour operator Kuoni’s most recommended wedding destination for couples slaps biz visa requirement; more paper work and official-level certifications
For several years Sri Lanka has been the most recommended wedding destination for couples by world’s leading tour operator Kuoni, bringing high-end tourists and valuable foreign exchange earnings for the tourism sector.  However, Sri Lanka appears to have stopped playing the cupid’s role, threatening the future of this important segment of tourism.
The travel and leisure industry is furious over new rules imposed for foreign couples wanting to get married in Sri Lanka. For example, couples in the UK (the most popular source market for weddings and honeymoons in Sri Lanka) are required to obtain business visa instead of tourist as previously followed. There is more documentation in addition to validation requirement as well.

Kuoni’s Top 10 Wedding destinations-Sri Lanka is Number 1

Kuoni’s web site promoting Sri Lanka as the
number one wedding destination.

Kuoni’s Top 10 Wedding destinations

Sri Lanka
Mauritius
Caribbean
Thailand
Bali
Hawaii
Las Vegas
New York
Kenya
Italy

ICT super highway empowers Colombo-Katunayake Expressway

Sri Lanka Telecom (SLT) said yesterday it has been chosen to provide consultancy services as well as oversee and inspect the Colombo-Katunayake Expressway (CKE) project’s communication infrastructure and issue an independent certification for fibre optic installation to assure its capacity to handle many terabytes per second along the 25.8 km long Expressway.
This has been awarded to SLT after the company successfully completed the laying of 117 km of optical fibre cable along the Southern Expressway to facilitate the information superhighway of the country.
This new Colombo-Katunayake Highway, which starts from the New Kelani Bridge, leads to the access road of the Bandaranaike International Airport, Katunayake, and the travel time from Colombo to Katunayake is expected to be reduced to 20 minutes.

Anti-NSA protest calls for end to US spying

WASHINGTON, October 26, 2013 (AFP) - Several thousand protesters gathered Saturday in Washington to demand a new American law limiting the National Security Agency's surveillance programs seen as encroaching on private life.

The protest comes amid a widening scandal revealing sweeping US surveillance on the communications of ordinary citizens and global leaders that has sparked outrage worldwide.