World Bank cuts 2022 East Asia growth outlook.

Economic growth in East Asia and the Pacific will weaken sharply in 2022 due to China's slowdown, but the pace of expansion will pick up next year, the World Bank said. The bank said in a report that it expected 2022 growth in the East Asia and Pacific region, which incl…

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US interest rates hit 14-year high in inflation battle.

The US central bank has pushed interest rates to the highest level in almost 15 years as it fights to rein in soaring prices in the world's largest economy. The Federal Reserve announced it was raising its key rate by another 0.75 percentage points, lifting the target ra…

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U.S. Ambassador to the UN Agencies in Rome Cindy McCain to visit Sri Lanka September 25 – 28.

United States Permanent Representative to the UN Food and Agriculture Agencies in Rome Ambassador Cindy McCain will visit Sri Lanka from September 25-28 to highlight U.S. food assistance programs in Sri Lanka and reinforce the U.S. commitment and lasting partnership with th…

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Tesla adds Airbnb co-founder Joe Gebbia to board.

Tesla has added Airbnb co-founder, designer and billionaire Joe Gebbia as an independent member to its board of directors, according to a regulatory filing out Wednesday 28 September. Gebbia’s addition to the board of Elon Musk’s electric vehicle maker follows the departure …

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Sri Lanka set to begin talks to restructure debt of $30 bln.

Crisis-hit Sri Lanka will begin on Friday the tricky task of debt renegotiation with a raft of private and bilateral creditors, including China, India and Japan, to restructure and repay nearly $30 billion that it owes. WHY THE NEED TO RESTRUCTURE DEBT ? Years of economic mis…

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China and UAE to join hands on moon rover missions.

China and the United Arab Emirates (UAE) have agreed to join hands to help further the latter’s space ambitions. The Mohammed Bin Rashid Space Centre (MBRSC) of the UAE and the China National Space Agency (CNSA) have signed a memorandum of understanding (MoU) to work togeth…

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Adobe to buy Figma in $20 billion bid on future of work that spooks investors.

Adobe Inc agreed on Thursday (15) to acquire cloud-based designer platform Figma for $20 billion, sparking investor concerns about the rich price tag that led to a drop of more than $30 billion in the market value of the Photoshop maker. The cash-and-stock deal, the biggest …

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Norwegian central bank uses Ethereum to build national digital currency.

The central bank of Norway has hit a major milestone in digital currency efforts, releasing the open-source code for the country’s central bank digital currency (CBDC) sandbox. Available on GitHub, the sandbox is designed to offer an interface for interacting with the test n…

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CSE trading hours extends from 15 Sept 2022.

The Board of Directors of the Colombo Stock Exchange (CSE), with the consultation of the Securities and Exchange Commission of Sri Lanka (SEC) and the stockbroking industry have decided to extend the trading hours from today (Thursday, 15th September 2022) as set out below: …

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Google completes $5.4B Mandiant acquisition.

Google LLC has completed its acquisition of Reston-based cybersecurity company Mandiant Inc. in an all-cash transaction valued at $5.4 billion. Google is paying $23 per share for Mandiant, which is joining Google Cloud while retaining its branding. The companies announced the…

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Lab grown milk ready to be sold by 2024.

Company Eden Brew has developed an animal-free milk that is expected to be sold in-store by 2024. They use yeast to brew proteins and then they take those proteins and they’re nature-identical, just like what forms in the cow’s tummy and they bind it up with all nutrition. Th…

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Japanese yen slips to 24-year low against dollar.

The Japanese yen has declined to its lowest level against the US dollar since August 1998, prompting the government to weigh action. The boost in the dollar stems from data suggesting the labour market of the world's biggest economy is recovering. On Thursday, the currenc…

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Professor Malik Ranasinghe Assumes Duties as Chairman of ICTA.

The Information and Communication Technology Agency (ICTA), announces that Professor Malik Ranasinghe has assumed duties as Chairman, ICTA. Professor Malik Ranasinghe is a Senior Professor in Civil Engineering at the University of Moratuwa (UoM) He is a Chartered Engineer, I…

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Sri Lanka to establish National Debt Management Agency.

President Ranil Wickremesinghe, in his interim budget speech, said an independent National Debt Management Agency (NDMA) would be established in the country. Speaking further, he said the government debt management-related activities are carried out by the Central Bank of Sr…

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Special unit to be set up for restructuring state-owned enterprises.

The government has decided to establish a “State-Owned Enterprise Restructuring Unit” with the aim of facilitating the restructuring of government-owned business entities. Presenting the Interim Budget 2022 in the parliament, President Ranil Wickremesinghe further proposed t…

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Special decision taken on 20% stake of state-owned banks.

President Ranil Wickremesinghe says the government has decided to allot 20% of shareholding in state-owned banks to the depositors and staff of those banks. The decision was taken in with the intention of meeting the recapitalization requirement borne out due to the increase…

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Retirement age of govt & semi-govt employees to be reduced.

The retirement age of government and semi-government employees will be reduced to 60 years, President Ranil Wickremesinghe says. Presenting the Interim Budget 2022 for the remainder of the fiscal year 2022, the Head of State noted that all employees who have served up to the…

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Indian billionaire Gautam Adani is now the world’s third richest man.

Now he's also the world's third richest person, overtaking LVMH (LVMHF) chairman Bernard Arnault and becoming the first Asian person to take that spot, according to Bloomberg and its Billionaires Index. Adani, who runs one of India's top conglomerates, is now bel…

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Compulsory tax registration proposed for all aged above 18 years.

President Ranil Wickremesinghe has proposed to introduce compulsory tax registration for all residents who are aged above 18 years without considering their annual income and tax-free thresholds. He stated this during the second reading of the Appropriation (Amendment) Bill,…

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Sri Lanka to increase VAT from September.

The Value-Added Tax (VAT) will be increased from 12% to 15% effective from September 01, President Ranil Wickremesinghe told the parliament today (30). The Head of State, in his capacity as the Minister of Finance, Economic Stabilization, and National Policies, presented the…

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