In this issue

2016’s biggest risk: Absurd budget assumptions

In early 2015, markets were feeling reassured that their year ahead was going to be spectacular. Neither elections nor uncertainty of a coalition government was going to stop Sri Lankan consumers from spending, firms from exporting and Sri Lanka from making giant strides to becoming a services hub.

Phew… was that not off the mark!

Earnings of listed firms were flat in 2015. Fixed income fared better because inflation was low.

Asset allocation is about to get a little trickier in 2016. Few expect corporate profits to rebound this year, so pickings are thin. Inflation will make a comeback, fixed income narrowing real returns. Holding cash, which was a sensible enough thing to do last year, won’t continue to work in 2016 because of inflation, which is already at 4.5% and rising fast. To allocate assets a macroeconomic view will be more important than in the past years because these uncertainties are both altered and elevated compared to the last few years.

The government’s budget seems to be making absurd assumptions about income, spending and how the deficit is going to be bridged without causing widespread mayhem.

There is little that can be usefully said about the 2016 outlook for the market except that short-term fixed-income instruments are the surest bet. But asset managers and investors won’t be judged on how safe their bests were, but by how much they exceed benchmarks. To achieve this, they should keep a keen eye on macro developments. That’s what will matter the most.

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.