Monday Nov 25, 2024
Monday Nov 25, 2024
Friday, 31 January 2014 00:10 - - {{hitsCtrl.values.hits}}
CSE-organised road shows held since 2013 in Mumbai, Dubai and Hong Kong in partnership with the Bloomberg Data Services.
The overall enthusiasm and confidence that outlook remains positive for Sri Lanka was also manifested by the fact that there was a large local delegation.
Senior Minister for International Monetary Cooperation and Deputy Finance Minister Dr. Sarath Amunugama, Sri Lanka’s High Commissioner in Singapore Ferial Ashraff, Central Bank Governor Nivard Cabraal, CSE Chairman Krishan Balendra and SEC Chairman Nalaka Godahewa formed the official contingent along with SEC Commissioner Mohamed Zuraish Hifaz Hashim, Central Bank Deputy Governor Dr. Nandalal Weerasinghe, Assistant Governor C. J.P. Siriwardena and SriLankan Airlines Chairman Nishantha Wickremasinghe. Several Directors of the CSE Board – Vajira Kulatilaka, Ray Abeywardena and Asanga Seneviratne – were also present.
"As a middle income nation we are hoping to build up our strength for the future. In order to build up our strengths and to make our economy grow on a much more sustainable platform, we require new avenues of thrust areas coming into the economy… Opportunities we have are enormous. We have created a platform and we are jealously protecting it to ensure that it is in benign territory. We can ensure that you can have a wonderful investment appetite continuing – Central Bank Governor Ajith Nivard Cabraal"
Over a dozen Sri Lankan blue chips formed the private sector delegation whose executives attended the one-to-one business meetings. They included John Keells Holdings PLC, National Development Bank PLC, DFCC Bank, Carson Cumberbatch PLC, Distilleries Company of Sri Lanka PLC, Dialog Axiata PLC, Ceylinco Insurance PLC, Hayleys PLC, Access Engineering PLC, People’s Leasing & Finance PLC, 
Hemas Holdings PLC, Softlogic Holdings PLC and Tokyo Cement Company (Lanka) PLC.
The profile of representation from the private sector too was impressive, with the likes of JKH Deputy Chairman Ajit Gunewardene, Access Engineering Chairman Sumal Perera, Ceylinco Insurance General Managing Director Ajith Gunawardena, Hemas Holdings incoming CEO Steven Enderby and People’s Leasing CEO P. Kumarage. Additionally Standard Chartered Bank Sri Lanka CEO Anirban Ghosh-Dastidar was also present whilst Moody’s new subsidiary Copal Amba Sri Lanka Country Head Chanakya Dissanayake made a special presentation.
"Sri Lanka is surely the most precious pearl of the Indian Ocean and full of investment opportunities. On behalf of the Government of Sri Lanka and the people, I would invite all to be part Sri Lanka’s rise and emergence into the century – Sri Lanka’s High Commissioner in Singapore Ferial Ismail Ashraff"
Participation from capital markets industry was at a high too. They included Bartleet Religare, Acuity Stockbrokers, John Keells Stock Brokers, Asha Phillip, Lanka Securities, Asia Capital Securities, Nation Lanka Equities Ltd., First Capital Equities, Capital Trust, CT Smith, NDB Securities Ltd., Capital Alliance, SMB Securities Ltd., First Guardian Equities, Taprobane, IIFL Securities Ceylon, TKS Securities, Softlogic Stockbrokers, Richard Peiris, LOLC, Investrust Capital Ltd., and National Asset Management.
Senior Minister for International Monetary Cooperation and Deputy Finance Minister Dr. Sarath Amunugama, Sri Lanka’s High Commissioner in Singapore Ferial Ashraff, Central Bank Governor Nivard Cabraal and Copal Amba Sri Lanka Country Head Chanakya Dissanayake made presentations. Thereafter CSE Chairman Krishan Balendra, SEC Chairman Nalaka Godahewa joined Amunugama, Cabraal and Ashraff in a panel discussion. Additionally a separate session was held featuring presentations on the opportunities available in the Sri Lankan debt market. This was dealt with by Central Bank Assistant Governor C.J. Siriwardena and CSE Director Vajira Kulathilaka.
The forum also included one-to-one and small group meetings among Singapore participants and representatives of top Lankan blue chip companies.
Separately Sri Lanka also pitched for investments into capital markets from the diaspora present in the Lion City at a highly-patronised event hosted by the Singapore-Sri Lanka Business Association (SLBA) at the 64th floor of the Tower Club in Raffles Place. (See pix on Page 14)
The growing confidence of foreign investors in the Sri Lankan stock market is reflected by the record levels of foreign inflows in 2012 (Rs. 39 billion) as well as in 2013 (Rs. 34 billion). Following are excerpts from the main presentations.
Sri Lanka’s High Commissioner in Singapore Ferial Ismail Ashraff
Sri Lanka’s High Commissioner in Singapore Ferial Ismail Ashraff in her welcome address said the high turnout for the forum was most encouraging and described it as an “excellent omen”.
“Sri Lanka’s economic growth and the rate of infrastructure development have reached great heights during the last few years. The Government has placed high priority on the reconstruction efforts in the northern and eastern parts of the island, providing 
accessibility and mobility to passengers and cargo alike. The commercial capital, Colombo, has witnessed a surge of investments in the last couple of years as investors have found Sri Lanka’s political climate to be very satisfactory and stable in nature to invest and partake in the country’s economic plan,” Ashraff told participants. “Sri Lanka is surely the most precious pearl of the Indian Ocean and full of investment opportunities. On behalf of the Government of Sri Lanka and the people, I would invite all to be part Sri Lanka’s rise and emergence into the century,” the High Commissioner added.
Senior Minister for International Monetary Cooperation and Deputy Minister of Finance and Planning
Dr. Sarath Amunugama
Senior Minister for International Monetary Cooperation and Deputy Minister of Finance and Planning Dr. Sarath Amunugama also acknowledged the high turnout when he said: “I have been attending many of these investment seminars in Singapore and I am very happy to say that this is probably the biggest gathering of people who are interested in Sri Lanka, interested in investing in Sri Lanka.”
Noting that most present are managing other people’s money, the Minister said fund managers face hard questions and have to make hard decisions. “Today I think we will all address the question of what makes Sri Lanka so special. We should have a lengthy discussion because that is the tribute we can take to all of you who are really important business people, important decision makers when it comes to our economy.”
Expanding on what is so special about Sri Lanka, Dr. Amunugama said if one takes a five-year span and looks at the Asian economies, one will find that growth and development in Sri Lanka has been spectacular.
“I would even say that if you go by numbers, the most spectacular growth during the five years averaging around 7.5% to 8% growth over that period. How did that come about? Firstly, because we were able to conclusively defeat terrorism and establish peace in Sri Lanka four years ago. You know that terrorism is very rarely conclusively defeated. We know that in our region and in the world. But Sri Lanka stands out as one country which was able to comprehensively defeat terrorism and establish peace. During the last four-and-a-half years, we’ve had absolute peace and tranquillity in the country, and we can say with a great deal of certainty that Sri Lanka is one of the safest countries in the region and in the world.”
“Now the consequences of the end of terrorism and the integration of our economy, has been very clearly seen; two major districts which were not integrated with our economy due to the war have now been fully integrated and I think we could even say that they have been frontrunners in the sustained growth in Sri Lanka, particularly in the field of agriculture. Due to that, Sri Lanka has made spectacular gains in self-sufficiency. Today everybody is talking about food security. Sri Lanka is one country which has been able, within the last five years, to ensure that the basic cereals for the population of our country, basic food stuffs, have now been developed and we are now in a position to say that we have established a good platform from the point of view of food security.”
Minister Amunugama said this achievement was largely because Sri Lanka has been able to integrate economy and also make large and consistent investments in agriculture, power, and in energy, particularly irrigation.
“We are really secure as far as agriculture is concerned. Secondly, our commercial agriculture also has improved. Last year, we had a historic high in tea earnings. So as far as the agriculture sector is concerned, though it is a diminishing part of our GDP, we have established a good base,” the Minister said.
“The second is that Sri Lanka has invested really heavily in infrastructure. I think if you take our region, and if you take the proportions because we are a small country compared to a large number of big countries, ratio-wise, we have made a huge investment in infrastructure,” he added.
He noted that a country cannot enhance exports unless there are good ports and airports. “That is the basic fact we have learnt from you in Singapore, from China, from all developing countries. And we have invested very heavily in ports, airports,” he added.
The Singapore Forum was also told that Sri Lanka was the only South Asian country which had no power shedding or power cuts and could guarantee to all investors and with absolute certainty continuity in power supply.
“So we have made a big investment in infrastructure. Thirdly, we have also made, and this is very often not remarked upon, a big investment in human resources. We have totally revamped the educational process and today, I think we are bringing out the core of young people in our country who can compete with anybody in our region when it comes to modern technology and modern knowledge. This was, we have to admit, a big gap in our country. In the last 50 years or 40 years this was a big drawback because our educational system had to be revamped, and now we are seeing the results of that.”
Dr. Amunugama told participants that the forum was being held at a time when Sri Lanka was beginning to reap the benefits of peace, the benefits of integration, the benefits of the first investment in infrastructure and the benefits of the investment in human resources.
“Now none of that can be achieved unless you have political stability. This is something that would concern you because you are investing other people’s money, and it is a very legitimate concern as far as you are concerned – to see whether this money is safe, whether that country can give you guarantees, both in terms of governance and also in terms of political stability, and of economic growth, that your investments are safe. Sri Lanka is one country which can guarantee to you, through Constitutional guarantees, that your investment is safe. We have not only in our Constitution, but we are participants in all global governance, global treaties, we have arrangements with the World Bank, a group regarding guarantees for investment in Sri Lanka.”
He also emphasised that Sri Lanka’s growth has been quite spectacular, especially in an era when there has been a downturn in the global economy, with many countries which were driving global growth having to react to this global downturn and most of them having had to bring down their growth in business.
“Sri Lanka is one country which was able to withstand these changes, through policies, through growth-oriented development, to ensure that we continue on that growth path. Someone asked, ‘weren’t there blips?’ Certainly there were blips, certainly we had negotiations with the IMF, and that too I must say, you can always check this out with IMF, Sri Lanka is one country which has a very good record with the IMF where we completed the Stand-By Arrangement to the satisfaction of both sides.
You know that most countries which get into IMF Stand-By Arrangements see the arrangements break down. So if you look at the record as you’d naturally do in terms of the IMF, in terms of the rating agencies, in terms of the research done in banks, in terms of research done in think-tanks, they all converge,” Minister Amunugama said.
“Of course there can be differences in opinions, there can be controversies, but they all converge on the one fact that Sri Lanka is growing quite reasonably well. We are hoping to grow to a higher stage where we can think of a minimum 8% growth because all the investments that we made are now beginning to kick in.”
Focusing on the Hambantota sea port, Amunugama said two-thirds of the world’s shipping, because of the oil shipments mainly, go past Sri Lanka’s harbour of Hambantota throughout the year. “So these are the potentialities; there are so many applications to start refineries, start storage facilities, so these are aspects that you must take into account – the investments we have made are beginning to kick in,” he added.
The Minister also noted that Sri Lanka is one country which has respected all its obligations when it came to financial matters. “The Central Bank came under great pressure to bring in various controls when money was going out of this country. We have paid all our debts on time, we have never defaulted, we have never asked for revisions of rescheduling, we have never prevented investment coming in or going out. They took a principal decision, no, if they invest they have every right to take their money back, whatever the circumstances. Almost all those who took their money out during the difficult time are now coming back and they are telling us that the greatest reason they are coming back is at that time, when everybody was talking about gloom and doom, the Sri Lankan monetary authorities decided to play fair, and that is our basic thing – you are safe in Sri Lanka, you are working with intelligent people, you are working with a leadership which is strong, which is continuous, and which is modernising.”
“I must say that I represent both the administration and the political authorities and we’ve had, I’d like to think, a happy relationship. Very often we forget the fact that never has the political leadership in Sri Lanka, like the leadership in Singapore, stood in the way of modernisation. So we are modernisers. And I ask you, please join us, and join in this adventure to see Sri Lanka grow as an example in regional cooperation and global cooperation,” Minister Amunugama added.
You know that most countries which get into IMF Stand-By Arrangements see the arrangements break down. So if you look at the record as you’d naturally do in terms of the IMF, in terms of the rating agencies, in terms of the research done in banks, in terms of research done in think-tanks, they all converge,” Minister Amunugama said.
“Of course there can be differences in opinions, there can be controversies, but they all converge on the one fact that Sri Lanka is growing quite reasonably well. We are hoping to grow to a higher stage where we can think of a minimum 8% growth because all the investments that we made are now beginning to kick in.”
Minister Amunugama said Sri Lanka recently entered into negotiations with the biggest travel company in the world, TUI, and they are shifting their operations, partly from Egypt, partly from Thailand, and so on. “We will be seeing in our new Mattala Airport six dream liners coming in with chartered traffic. So that will bring faith and negate some of the criticisms as to why we have a second airport. We want a second airport because we have really ambitious targets when it comes to tourism and our exports,” the Minister explained.
Focusing on the Hambantota sea port, Amunugama said two-thirds of the world’s shipping, because of the oil shipments mainly, go past Sri Lanka’s harbour of Hambantota throughout the year. “So these are the potentialities; there are so many applications to start refineries, start storage facilities, so these are aspects that you must take into account – the investments we have made are beginning to kick in,” he added.
The Minister also noted that Sri Lanka is one country which has respected all its obligations when it came to financial matters. “The Central Bank came under great pressure to bring in various controls when money was going out of this country. We have paid all our debts on time, we have never defaulted, we have never asked for revisions of rescheduling, we have never prevented investment coming in or going out. They took a principal decision, no, if they invest they have every right to take their money back, whatever the circumstances. Almost all those who took their money out during the difficult time are now coming back and they are telling us that the greatest reason they are coming back is at that time, when everybody was talking about gloom and doom, the Sri Lankan monetary authorities decided to play fair, and that is our basic thing – you are safe in Sri Lanka, you are working with intelligent people, you are working with a leadership which is strong, which is continuous, and which is modernising.”
“I must say that I represent both the administration and the political authorities and we’ve had, I’d like to think, a happy relationship. Very often we forget the fact that never has the political leadership in Sri Lanka, like the leadership in Singapore, stood in the way of modernisation. So we are modernisers. And I ask you, please join us, and join in this adventure to see Sri Lanka grow as an example in regional cooperation and global cooperation,” Minister Amunugama added.
Central Bank Governor Ajith Nivard Cabraal
Central Bank Governor Ajith Nivard Cabraal said the forum was an ideal opportunity to showcase Sri Lanka and also to speak about the opportunities which lay ahead for those who were connecting to our economy and country.
He said credit should go to the Government as well as the key decision makers of the Government who provided the space and freedom to take decisions to ensure that Sri Lanka’s sustainability is projected to the world. “It is a constant reminder of the fair play that we have in our country, as well as the deep commitment for growth in our nation and the region,” Cabraal added.
“Dr. Amunugama very eloquently spoke to you about what makes Sri Lanka so special. He gave several examples of the ways in which this country has developed, what we have done, the challenges we faced and how we have been able to deal with those challenges. Let me take you a little bit further. As savvy investors, you want to know whether the growth momentum will last. Whenever investors talk to us, they often question us on the future as they are locking in capital; as Dr. Amunugama quite rightly mentioned they are keen on the return to investment.
“In the performance of capital, what is most relevant is what the country is going to do and what the country’s macro fundamentals will look like because every one of us is connected to the overall macro fundamentals of the nation. It is like eggs in a basket, all the eggs are safe if the basket is also safe. If the basket were to break, your eggs will not be safe. So in order for the eggs to be safe, the baskets in which the eggs are carried need to be safe and we are deeply conscious of that. So what have we done to make sure that the basket of your eggs is protected and kept safe? We understand that the macro fundamentals in a country are extremely vital to be protected on a long-term basis. Sometimes tough decisions have to be taken in order to ensure that the long-term stability of the economy is sustained. If you look at some of the main fundamentals, like growth, inflation, reserves, employment, poverty or debt, we have been consciously improving each year from that of the previous year.
“One of the ways in which we have internationalised our economy has been to go to the international markets since 2007. It was a difficult step for us at that time, as there was a conflict raging in our country and we had fundamentals which weren’t all that attractive. Still we penetrated foreign markets. We gave certain assurances to international investors. We told them that each year there will be certain targets that we would be moving towards and that we were very keen to deliver on targets.”
“One of the ways in which we have been able to ensure that our investment partners stay with us has been by going back and telling them that we have given them what we promised during the previous year. This is a very important factor for us. We take pride in that delivery. Whether it was inflation numbers, growth numbers, reserve numbers, unemployment, poverty or debt, all of this has been delivered. I won’t go into detail because I believe many of you are familiar with those numbers as well as the progress that we have made. But I must also tell you that it has been a huge challenge for us and it has been satisfying in completion.
“At the same time, there have been many ways in which our economy had to be repositioned in order to move forward with clarity and with sustainability. Each year we have undertaken some major changes and improvements in our economy. If you take the last few years, in the year 2012, we undertook reforms in order to ensure that our economy could be sustainable externally. We brought in certain measures to ensure that our overall external sector was given huge sustainability. We have a stable currency at a point when foreign currencies are in turmoil. Further on, the reserves are building up, projecting a clear future.
“Last year we introduced reforms to two State public utilities, namely the Petroleum Corporation and the Ceylon Electricity Board. They have been bleeding for a long period of time and thereby putting a lot of pressure on our economy. Currently, the changes that were needed in order to make them profitable public institutions have taken care of. Today, once again, notwithstanding the changes that we have made, political stability has been maintained. Further on, adjustments in our pricing has taken place. However, inflation numbers have yet to be maintained at benign levels.
“This year, we are undertaking another key improvement of placing our financial system at a more sustainable level by consolidating the non-financial business sector, banking sector, non-banking sector, etc. They will all do well for the next few years and that is why I believe we can confidently proclaim that we have been able to ensure that the overall conditions are in the right direction for investors.
“At the same time, as a middle income nation we are hoping to build up our strength for the future. In order to build up our strengths and to make our economy grow on a much more sustainable platform, we require new avenues of thrust areas coming into the economy. As you are aware the new thrust areas, the port development that the honourable Minister spoke about, the airport development, the knowledge sector, knowledge-based industries and energy will accelerate growth. Further on, our locations as well as the time zone suggest that we can be a very effective zone for commercial activities and tourism.
“Opportunities we have are enormous. So whatever sector you want to invest in, let it be the financial sector, the tourism sector, the port sector, airport sector or any other sector, we have the knowledge as well as the expertise. You can select an area in Sri Lanka which can be of use to you.
“We have created a platform and we are jealously protecting it to ensure that it is in benign territory as far as all of you are concerned. As the honourable Minister mentioned, our investors had to take their money away at the time that we had some negative pressure. We gave them the freedom to take it away without placing any obstacles which would have made it difficult for them to do so. As he quite rightly mentioned, it paid dividends because there were many investors who were then able to say, ‘here is a country in which we can invest and we can take it back’. This is the assurance that we want to give you. We also want to tell you that you are welcome in our country, not only as an investor, but also as a tourist; for those of you who haven’t still made it across to Sri Lanka, please do so. We love to welcome you and I am sure you will enjoy your visit there as well.
“I want to finally thank our authorities in Singapore who have worked very hard to put this forum together to enable you to understand Sri Lanka better so that we ourselves can give you a flavour of what is in store for you and what we are doing in our country. We can ensure that you can have a wonderful investment appetite continuing and we’d like to finally say, come see us, visit us, work and enjoy Sri Lanka.”
