Thursday, 24 October 2013 00:49
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Confident of achieving $ 2 b target this year
Reuters: Sri Lanka attracted $ 890 million in Foreign Direct Investment (FDI) in the first nine months of 2013, Investment Promotion Minister Lakshman Yapa Abeywardena said on Wednesday, a jump of 44.8% year on year.
The inflows, which also include foreign loans by companies registered with the country’s investment body, were $614.7 million in the first nine months of 2012.
They grew to $1.34 billion by the end of 2012, with infrastructure-related projects accounting for 45% of the inflows, data from the Central Bank showed.
“For the first nine months, we have got $890 million. This year we can achieve the $2 billion target,” Abeywardena told Reuters. The $59-billion economy missed that target last year.
He said the Board of Investment (BOI), Sri Lanka’s investment body, has signed 15 projects for $8 billion in FDI which could create around 30,000 jobs in the country.
Abeywardena expects a total of at least $600 million FDI before the end of this year, for Australian gambling tycoon James Packer’s Crown Ltd. planned $400-million hotel resort that will include a casino, and a $850 million luxury resort by John Keells Holdings Plc.
