Sri Lanka recorded its highest Foreign Direct Investment (FDI) of USD 1900 million in 2017, said Prime Minister Ranil Wickremesinghe yesterday.

The World Bank (WB) last month withdrew US$ 200 million in funds, which were earmarked for a garbage disposal project and Kelani River Flood Protection work, alleging corrupt practice in the awarding of contracts, reliable sources told this reporter recently.

Chinese Ambassador in Colombo Cheng Xueyuan has informed Prime Minister Ranil Wickremesinghe that the Chinese government has approved USD 1 billion as funding for the phase one of the Central Expressway project.

Rice imports fell 34.4 percent to 23.5 million US dollars in February 2018 from a year earlier, as harvest came in and domestic prices eased, official data showed. Sri Lanka’s rice imports surged from the second quarter of 2017 as the government cut import duties when a drought slashed the industry.

Mass Media Minister Mangala Samaraweera today appointed four Chairmen to state media institutions with immediate effect.

If Sri Lanka’s economy is to develop to the level expected, measures should be taken to keep corruption out of State institutions, former Defence Secretary and the Chairman of the “Viyath Maga” Organisation Gotabaya Rajapaksa said yesterday.

President Maithripala Sirisena who is on a two day state visit to Iran met with President Hassan Rouhani of Iran yesterday (13).

There is no controversy between the Rajapaksa brothers as some say, said the former President Mahinda Rajapaksa.

The ’1990′ pre-hospital care free ambulance service will get a boost shortly with the introduction of legislation to expand the service to cover the whole island and ensure the smooth operation of the service in a sustainable manner.

Strongly denying that he had apologised to President Maithripala Sirisena for his recent criticism of the latter, Sustainable Development, Wildlife and Regional Development Minister Sarath Fonseka yesterday told…

There has been no decision to take over the Samurdhi Bank under the Central Bank, Central Bank Governor, Dr. Indrajit Coomaraswamy said.

Bus fares for private busses are expected to be increased by a minimum of 10 percent with effect from next week, the Lanka Private Bus Owners Association (LPBOA) President Gemunu Wijeratne said today.

UPFA MP A.H.M.Fowzie was sworn in as the National Unity and Reconciliation State Minister before President Maithripala Sirisena this morning.

Hendavitharanage Selin Kumara alias ‘Thel Kumara’ has been shot dead by unidentified gunmen in Trincomalee this morning (11), police said.

Finance Minister Mangala Samaraweera said the prices of fuel would be reviewed every two months and the prices would be changed accordingly.

Sri Lanka hiked fuel prices Thursday by up to 130 percent following pressure from the International Monetary Fund and its central bank to reduce the burden of heavy subsidies on its struggling economy.