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Monday September 25th, 2023

One million Sinopharm doses to arrive in Sri Lanka June 6; second dose to be rolled out from June 8

ECONOMYNEXT – Sri Lanka will receive one million doses of the Sinopharm COVID-19 vaccine on June 06 with rollout of the second dose set to begin June 08, Army Commander Gen Shavendra Silva said.

This will be the first purchased consignment of the Chinese vaccine to arrive in the island, Silva told reporters on May 29.

Half a million doses of Sinopharm arrived on May 26, 125,000 of which were administered to residents in the Kurunegala, Galle and Matara districts in what was the first rolling out of a COVID-19 vaccine outside the Western province.

According to the army chief, the remaining 375,000 doses which were reserved to be administered as the second jab will now be distributed across more districts following the confirmation of the June 06 consignment.

As instructed by President Gotabaya Rajapaksa, he said, 100,000 doses will be sent to the Colombo district, 75,000 to Gampaha, 50,000 each to Kurunegala, Ratnapura and Jaffna, and 25,000 to Matara. Silva did not clarify how the remaining 25,000 doses will be used.

Sri Lanka is purchasing Sinopharm at USD 15 per dose.

Health Services Director General Dr Asela Gunawardena told reporters on May 29 that prices were decided after discussions with the manufacturer.

Gunawardena was responding to claims by the main opposition Samagi Jana Balavegaya (SJB) that Sri Lanka has paid USD 5 more than Bangladesh had for each dose.

Indian newspaper Mint reported quoting Bangladesh’s Finance Minister A H M Mustafa Kamal that Dhaka was indeed purchasing the vaccine at USD 10 per dose, contrary to claims by Sri Lankan officials.

Dr Gunawardena, however, insisted that Sri Lanka was paying the best possible price.

“The price can range from 18-40 dollars due to various reasons,” he said.

Sri Lanka has administered the second dose of the AstraZeneca Covishield vaccine for 345,789 out of a total 925,242 who had received their first shot.

The first dose of Sinopharm has been given to 666,612 so far while the first dose of the Sputnik V vaccine has been given to 16,664.

According to Gen Silva, from June 08 onwards first dose receivers of Sinopharm will get their second shot at the same vaccination centre they received the first dose. (Colombo/May31/2021)

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Sri Lanka sells 2028 bonds at 14.52-pct

ECONOMYNEXT – Sri Lanka sold all offered bonds in 2026 and 2028 maturities raising 220 billion rupees from an auction Monday, data from the state debt office showed.

The debt office sold 135 billion rupees of 1 June 2026 bonds to yield 15.64 percent.

Another 85 billion rupees in 01 July 2028 bonds were sold to yield 14.52 percent.

The 2028 bond is offered on tap at the weighted average yield. (Colombo/Sept25/2023)

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Sri Lanka’s stocks end down on Monday after slow day of trading

ECONOMYNEXT – Sri Lanka shares were down at close of trading on Monday.

Turnover was 550 million rupees.

The main All Share Price Index was down 0.36 percent or 40.02 points to 11,216.50, while the S&P SL20 was down 0.44 percent or 14.07 points to 3,164.52.

Trading in the Capital Goods Industry (174,037,134) drove turnover.

Commercial Bank, Expolanka Holdings, and Aitken Spence plc saw losses, while National Development Bank, John Keells Holdings and Melstacorp saw gains in the day’s trading.

The market saw a net foreign inflow of 13 million rupees, while the yearly net foreign inflow was 429 million rupees. (Colombo/Sep25/2023)

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Sri Lanka rupee closes at 324.75/324.90 to the US dollar

ECONOMYNEXT – Sri Lanka’s rupee closed at 324.75/90 to the US dollar on Monday, from Friday’s close at 324.70/325.00 dealers said.

Bond yields were up.

A bond maturing on 01.07.2025 closed up at 15.55/15.70 percent on Monday, after closing at 14.95/15.30 percent on Friday.

A bond maturing on 01.08.2026 closed up at 15.50/15.65 percent up from 14.95/15.10 percent.

A bond maturing on 15.09.2027 closed up at 14.75/15.50 percent from 14.55/15.00 percent.

A bond maturing on 01.05.2028 closed up at 14.25/14.60 from 14.00/14.30 percent.

A bond maturing on 15.05.2030 closed stable at 13.00/13.50.

A bond maturing on 01.07.2032 closed at 12.95/13.45 percent from 13.00/13.45 percent. (Colombo/Sept25/2023)

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