In this issue

In the 30 months from the onset of the Covid pandemic to the end of 2022, Sri Lanka printed almost Rs2.5 trillion. Between February 2020 and September 2022, Sri Lanka’s domestic debt stock (t-bills, bonds) increased by 96% to Rs13.3 trillion. Some of the increase was due to Sri Lanka’s inability to access the foreign commercial market resulting in rupee-denominated debt replacing maturing foreign currency-denominated loans. Total debt (including all foreign currency debt) also increased by 89% to Rs25 trillion. Because the currency collapsed by 80% in the second quarter of 2022, the rupee value of the foreign debt increased by an equal amount.
It takes incredible incompetence and/or arrogance to oversee the near-doubling of a country’s public debt in 30 months without anything to show for it. Surely, no public servant went without a salary in that time, and people paid less tax, but with devastating consequences now.
Impacts of the debt orgy on asset prices pale in comparison to the pain and lost hope. But the debt, combined with lower interest rates, remains a primary reason for the run-up in prices of equity and debt. After several years we have a climate without easy money, and in this Investor’s Guide, we discuss how to navigate portfolios through this crisis.

Echelon Magazine Description:

Intelligent Storytelling

The one thing that will define the Echelon magazine will be the quality of the storytelling. Echelon,published monthly, will cover in depth Sri Lanka’s most successful businesses, examine their winning strategiesand profile their leaders in immersive stories. Great stories are also never limited to words, and our approach includes rich photography, bold graphics and leading edge design which together will make for a compelling read.

But business doesn’t start and end in a boardroom;it extends to the golf club greens, to international travel and to pursuits that blurthe lines between commercial venture and sheer passion. The Echelon team will present the best in business and lifestyle coverage that will appeal to an exclusive and affluent readership: an otherwise hard to reach demographic.

Content will be developed by one of the most experienced and proven teams of editors, financial journalists, photographers and designers in the country.This team has already raised the bar for powerful and expertly crafted business news. Shamindra Kulamannage, will lead the editorial team.

The reputation of Echelon is being built on the separation between editorial and advertising. However we are also looking for the most creative and impactful new formats that can be applied in our magazines, iPad app as well as website to help our clients reach our audience. We are flexible and creative and we will have a solution for every single advertiser who wants to reach our audience.

We are passionate about creative results and about working with our advertisers to help them create bespoke multi platform creative solutions with our in house creative team and of course our sales team.

Echelon will be a great place to show off the products and capabilities of our clients because they will be surrounded by an editorial product that is expertly crafted, full of integrity and intelligence.