The Monetary Board, at its special meeting held on Friday, 14th October 2016, considered an interim report on the operations of primary dealers, including their financial performance during the year ended 31st March, 2016 as well as the five month period ended 31st August 2016. It noted with concern the sharp disparity in the performance of primary dealers, as well as certain issues related to the pattern of trading activities. In this connection, the Monetary Board instructed expeditious completion of the ongoing process of preparation of the relevant On-Site Examination Reports. This would enable the Monetary Board to make an early determination on the future course of action.
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Statement issued by the Monetary Board
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External Sector Performance - July 2016
The external sector performance improved in July 2016 with a reduction of the trade deficit, increased tourist earnings and higher inflows to the financial account. The trade deficit contracted in July, due to the reduction in imports which outweighed the reduction in exports. Tourist earnings increased while workers’ remittances declined during the month compared to the corresponding period of the previous year. Inflows to the financial account strengthened with the proceeds of US dollars 1,500 million from the issuance of the 10th international sovereign bond, US dollars 300 million from the Syndicated Loan facility and net inflows recorded in the government securities market and the Colombo Stock Exchange (CSE), easing the pressure on the Balance of Payments.
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Central Bank Resolves Four Insolvent Financial Institutions to Protect Depositors and Promote the Financial System Stability
As announced to the public on 10.10.2016, the Monetary Board at its meeting held on 14.10.2016 considered resolution issues pertaining to a number of non-bank financial institutions in the context of relevant legal provisions in the interest of protecting the public trust in the financial system. Accordingly, the Monetary Board approved a resolution mechanism for repayment of depositors of three finance companies and legitimate investors in government securities-linked investments in Entrust Securities PLC.
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Inflation in September 2016
Inflation, as measured by the change in the National Consumer Price Index (NCPI) (2013=100), which is compiled by the Department of Census and Statistics, increased to 4.7 per cent in September 2016 from 4.5 per cent in August 2016, on year-on-year basis. Both Food and Non-food categories contributed towards the year-on-year inflation in September 2016.
The change in the NCPI measured on an annual average basis increased to 3.8 per cent in September 2016 from 3.6 per cent in August 2016.
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Land Price Index - First Half of 2017
In order to monitor the developments in the real estate sector, Central Bank of Sri Lanka (CBSL) has been compiling and analyzing several indicators. The bi-annual Land Price Index (LPI) which is compiled covering the Colombo District since 1998 is one of the indicators of this nature. In the compilation process of LPI, CBSL uses the land price data collected by the Valuation Department of Sri Lanka covering around 50 centers of five Divisional Secretariat (DS) divisions1 in the Colombo District. In view of the diverse nature of the land use and to maintain homogeneity, three indices for residential, commercial and industrial lands are computed separately. The overall LPI is computed by taking the average of these three sub-indices.
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Financial Intelligence Unit of Sri Lanka Entered into a Memorandum of Understanding with Department of Inland Revenue
In terms of the provisions of the Financial Transactions Reporting Act, No. 6 of 2006 (FTRA), the Financial Intelligence Unit (FIU) of Sri Lanka entered into a Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) with the Department of Inland Revenue on October 19, 2016 at the Central Bank of Sri Lanka to exchange information in order to facilitate investigations and prosecutions on money laundering and terrorist financing. Mrs. Kalyani Dahanayake, Commissioner General, Department of Inland Revenue and Mr. H. Amarathunga, Director, FIU signed the MOU on behalf of the respective institutions in the presence of Dr. -
Monetary Policy Review - No. 7 of 2017
Considering developments in the domestic and international macroeconomic environment, the Monetary Board, at its meeting held on 06 November 2017, was of the view that the current monetary policy stance is appropriate. Accordingly, the policy interest rates of the Central Bank of Sri Lanka will remain unchanged at their current levels.
The decision of the Monetary Board is consistent with the objective of maintaining inflation at midsingle digit levels over the medium term and thereby facilitating a sustainable growth trajectory. The rationale underpinning the monetary policy stance is set out below.
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Clarification on Employment Numbers Referred to in the Central Bank Annual Reports
The Central Bank of Sri Lanka (CBSL) has observed media reports highlighting the employment numbers referred to in the CBSL Annual Reports of 2014, 2015 and 2016.
Subsequent to the Census of Population and Housing (CPH) 2012 conducted by the Department of Census and Statistics (DCS) covering the entire island, the Registrar General’s Department introduced changes to the Mid-Year Population Estimates (MYPE) and published a revised series. Accordingly, in July 2016, the Labour Force Survey (LFS) estimates were re-weighted by the DCS and a new series was published for data pertaining to the years from 2011 onwards. This is the general practice in all other countries and it maintains the consistency of LFS estimates with the revised MYPE.
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SL Purchasing Managers’ Index Survey - October 2016
The Manufacturing Sector PMI stood at 56.5 in October compared to 57.7 in September 2016. The deceleration in PMI indicate that the manufacturing activities are expanding at a moderate pace in October 2016. The deceleration in October compared to September was mainly due to the moderated pace in which Production and New Orders sub-indices performed. The Stock of Purchases sub-index increased significantly in October indicating a stack of stocks for the upcoming season while Suppliers’ Delivery Time increased marginally. The Employment sub-index also decelerated compared to the previous month. Overall data points to an expansion where all the subindices are above the neutral 50.0 threshold. The expectations for activities indicate an improvement for the next three months.
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The International Monetary Fund Releases the Second Tranche of US Dollars 162.6 million under the Extended Fund Facility
The first review of the three-year Extended Fund Facility (EFF) obtained by Sri Lanka has been successfully completed by the International Monetary Fund (IMF) and the second tranche to the value of SDR 119.894 million (approximately US dollars 162.6 million) has been disbursed on 18 November 2016.