Sri Lanka tourist arrivals up 1.3-pct in October

Tourist arrivals to Sri Lanka rose 1.3 percent from a year earlier to 152,429 in October 2017. In the first ten months arrivals rose 2.7 percent to 1,704,360. 

India remained the main market in October 2017 with 36996 arrivals followed by China,Uk and Germany.

Tourist Arrivals by Region



Tourist Arrivals by Country of Residence - Top Ten Countries

Sri Lanka Treasuries yields fall across maturities

ECONOMYNEXT – Yields on Sri Lankan Treasury Bills fell across maturities at an auction Wednesday with the 03-month bill yield down 08 basis points to 8.67 percent from 8.75 percent at the last auction, the public debt department said.

The 06-month bill yield fell 08 basis points to 9.02 percent from 9.10 percent at the last auction, the department, a unit of the central bank, said in a statement.

The one-year bill yield fell 04 basis points to 9.44 percent from 9.48 percent at the last auction.

The central bank said it got Rs77 billion worth of bids and accepted bids worth Rs20.6 billion.

Sri Lanka’s Aitken Spence Hotel Holdings returns to profit in Sept quarter

ECONOMYNEXT – Sri Lanka’s Aitken Spence Hotel Holdings returned to profit in the September 2017 quarter from a loss the year before with the bottom line boosted by earnings from the sale of a hotel.

Interim accounts filed with the stock exchange showed September 2017 quarter group net profit at Rs105 million compared with a net loss of Rs175 million the year before.

The accounts showed a sharp increase in other operating income to Rs365 million from Rs17 million the previous year.

A note to the accounts said this reflected gains from the sale of its entire holding in its fully owned subsidiary M.P.S Hotels (Pvt) Ltd which owns Hotel Hilltop in Kandy in September 2017.

The accounts showed profit on disposal of subsidiaries at Rs307.6 million.

Group sales rose 16.6% to 3.8 billion in the quarter with earnings per share at 30 cents. Aitken Spence Hotel Holdings traded at Rs30.90 Tuesday.

In the six months to September 2017 Aitken Spence Hotel Holdings made a loss per share of 36 cents.

A segmental analysis showed that sales increased in both its resorts in Sri Lanka and abroad, classified as South Asia and the Middle East, they still made a loss of Rs80 million, down from a loss of Rs122 million.

Aitken Spence Hotel Holdings said its Sri Lankan hotels made a pre-tax profit of Rs20 million in the six months to September 2017 compared with a loss of Rs106 million the year before.

Pre-tax losses in its resorts in South Asia and the Middle East widened to Rs100 million from Rs16 million the year before.

Mixed first half for Hayleys

* Turnover up 20% to Rs. 62.4 b; pre-tax profit down 44% to Rs. 1.38 b

Fuelled by topline growth across all of its key business segments, Hayleys PLC has posted a 20% year-on-year increase in turnover up to Rs. 62.4billion.

However its pre-tax profit was down by 44% to Rs. 1.38 billion and after tax profit declined by 56% to Rs. 718.7 million.

In a statement Hayleys said the Group has continuously infused higher levels of investment into key business segments with a view to enhancing growth potential over the medium-long term. These investments were also reflected in the Group’s net finance cost, which rose to Rs. 1.9 billion while group profit before tax for the period stood at Rs. 1.4 billion in 1HFY17/18.

In that context, Hayleys Group achieved significant benchmarks during the period in review, particularly in relation to its recent acquisition of a 61.73% of the issued share capital of Singer (Sri Lanka) PLC for a consideration of Rs. 10.9 billion, making it the single largest acquisition for a listed company in Sri Lanka in recent times. The Group raised its holding to 80.96% subsequent to the mandatory offer concluded on 31October.

Commenting on the Group’s performance over the first half, Hayleys PLC Chairman and Chief ExecutiveMohan Pandithage said: “The Group was able to achieve several significant milestones during the first half of the financial year, driven by aggressive investments that have positioned Hayleys Group for strong top and bottom line growth moving forward. Having finalised our acquisition of Singer Sri Lanka PLC, the Hayleys Group is now moving to expand rapidly into the retail sector leveraging on the time-tested expertise of both companies.

“We are confident that the acquisition of Singer (Sri Lanka) PLC together with the recent major investments that the Hayleys Group has made into leisure and transport and logistics sectors are anticipated to yield significantly improved results for the Group in the future.”

Turnover in the Group’s Transportationand Logistics segment rose from Rs. 11.1 billion up to Rs. 16.4 billion while operating profits rose from Rs. 631 million up to Rs. 1.1 billion during 1H17/18.

Strong export market prices supported notable improvements in the Group’s Plantation sector which recorded turnover of Rs. 6.5 billion, as compared with a previous Rs. 4.4 billion, which in turn enabled an operating profit of Rs. 216 million, as compared with a loss of Rs. 358 million in the corresponding period of the previous year.

Poor weather conditions hampered agricultural production, leading to a reduced turnover and operating profits, which ended the half at Rs. 5.5 billion, and Rs. 233 million respectively. Hayleys nevertheless maintains a positive outlook for its agriculture sector over the 2H17/18, particularly in the context of the commencement of the Maha season.

Increased raw material prices also negatively affected the group’s Hand Protection and Purification Products segments. Revenue in the Hand Protection segment stood at Rs. 8 billion while operating profits stood at Rs. 98 million. Revenue in the group’s Purification Products rose to Rs. 7.1 billion while operating profits closed the half at Rs. 358 million.

Leisure sector operating profits reduced to Rs. 36 million despite relatively stable turnover of Rs. 2.6 billion, largely as a result of investments made towards the refurbishment of key hospitality properties within the group.

www.ft.lk