Category Archives: export issues

September 7, 2025 · 2:57 pm

Indigenous ‘Touches’ within the British Colonial Era of Capitalist Expansion

Vinod Moonesinghe, IN  Factum Perspectives March 3, 2025, where the title runs thus: “Tindals, Dhonis, and Sampans – The interconnectedness of historical Indian Ocean commerce” ….  NB: the two photos &  the map are insertions by The Editor, Thuppahi

 In the days of the British Raj, bullock carts were used to transport goods inland and to bring coffee beans (and later tea) from the montane plantations down to Colombo, for shipment overseas.

The distance from the coffee plantations to the main seaport of Galle caused the colonial government to override the wishes of the British Admiralty and of the steamship lines (who all wished to operate from Galle, which was closer to the main sea route to the Orient) and to develop Colombo harbour at a considerable cost.

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March 8, 2025 · 4:56 pm

Developing Hambantota Port: The Controversy in 2019

Michael Roberts

An aerial drone photo taken on March 28, 2024 shows the Hambantota Port in Sri Lanka. Located in the south of Sri Lanka, the Hambantota Port is one of the signature projects of Belt and Road cooperation between China and Sri Lanka. (Photo by Xu Qin/Xinhua via Getty Images)

My Set of Bibliographical References

An Insider: “The Internal Tussles & Vagaries and Scheming that hindered the Development of the Hambantota Port Project,” 15 September 2021, https://thuppahis.com/2021/09/15/the-internal-tussles-vagaries-and-scheming-that-hindered-the-development-of-the-hambantoa-port-project/#more-55017

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November 25, 2024 · 6:46 pm

A Reading of the Sri Lankan Elections from THE ECONOMIST

Item in The Economist, 23 Nov 2024: “Sri Lanka’s Left Turn: Sri Lanka’s president with Marxist roots now dominates parliament too” .… with highlighting emphasis imposed by the Editor, Thuppahi

SRI LANKA was once a pioneer of free-market capitalism in South Asia. After J.R. Jayewardene took power with a super-majority in 1977, he introduced a French-style executive presidency and economic reforms that overturned the left-wing orthodoxy of the previous two decades. Cheered on by Western governments concerned about Soviet influence, Sri Lanka became the first country in the region to liberalise its economy.

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October 21, 2024 · 1:33 pm

Appreciating Beena Sarwar’s Documentary on Sri Lanka’s Parlous Situation

AUTHOR unknown –– An Item sent by  Nandi Jasentuliyana — Ex-Richmond College and long resident in USA

This documentary is by Beena Sarwar….. https://www.dawn.com/news/1864914

“There is a fine line between order and chaos. Its tenuous separation lies at the heart of the grand cycle of oppositional linkages in myth and history, in which fate, humans and nature seek a way out of the turbulence to which they may well have themselves contributed.

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September 12, 2024 · 1:01 pm

The Stark Political Choices Facing Sri Lanka’s Voters

Sugath Kulatunga, … whose preferred title was “The Choice”

The President RW and the leader of the opposition in their political manifestos are making extravagant promises to the people in the process of seeking a path to come into power. So do the other Presidential candidates who have not so far tasted power. We cannot judge them on performance, while RW and Sajith could be judged on their past performance. Sajith was the Deputy of the ruling party and a senior Cabinet Minister of past UNP governments. RW held key Cabinet posts of Prime Minister, Minister of Education and also Industries. They are responsible for the present crisis in the economy as they did not address the balance of payments arena, particularly the balance of trade problem which has been the chronic issues.

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June 26, 2024 · 12:18 am

Sri Lanka in the World of BRICS as Latter Expands

Eddie Barwood

This is an interesting report from a well known Russian media source reporting on the BRICS meetings there recently.

Countries are summarised concisely in terms of their economies,  key importer and exporter countries, goods involved, and challenges. I draw your attention to Sri Lanka which starts at 9’57 minutes. I was surprised to see that Sri Lanka mainly exports to US, India, UK, Germany and Italy  – mostly Western countries,  while the main imports come from India, China, the UAE, Malaysia and Singapore which are all Asian countries,  not Western.
Despite a trade deficit in 2022, Sri Lanka shows strong export performance in textiles,  tea and rubber products.  Its economy is diverse.
Total exports for 2022 $14.8 billion making it the 89th largest exporter in the world. SL still has problems managing its imports, particularly in the energy sector.
Preview YouTube video 28 Countries Joining BRICS With Names and Capacities: What Next?

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April 30, 2024 · 1:18 am

Market Competition. Double Standards in USA … by … USA

Allesandra Galloni & David Lawler,  whose chosen title runs thus: “Nothing off the table in US response to China overcapacity, Yellen says”… 26 April 2024

1/3]U.S. Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen attends an interview with Reuters Editor in Chief Alessandra Galloni in Washington, U.S., April 25, 2024. REUTERS/Evelyn Hockstein Purchase Licensing Rights, opens new tab
The Biden administration is not taking any options off the table to respond to China’s excess industrial capacity, which is a top concern for the U.S. and its allies, U.S. Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen told Reuters on Thursday.
China exporting its way to full employment is not acceptable to the rest of the world, Yellen said in a Reuters Next interview in Washington.
Yellen said that during her trip to China earlier this month, she was “successful” in raising U.S. concerns with Chinese officials about Beijing flooding global markets with electric vehicles (EVs), solar panels and other clean energy goods, threatening U.S. jobs. She added that Chinese officials acknowledge a problem with industrial overcapacity, but they needs to address it. Continue reading →

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September 22, 2023 · 9:11 pm

Liyanage in Conversation & Correspondence with NM Perera

Sumanasiri Liyanage, in Colombo Telegraph, 21 January 2022…. with highlighting imposed by The Editor, Thuppahi

At my age an uninterrupted sleep is a luxury. My prostate wakes me up at least two to three time. Hence, it is hard to distinguish dreams from imaginations. It was almost 1 am, I just finished my first lap of deep sleep when I heard knocking at my front door. “Who the hell at this time of the hour” I came out of the bed grumbling. I opened the door and I couldn’t believe my eyes. It was Dr NM Perera. “Comrade, at this time of the day” Astonished I asked even not inviting him to come in.

“May I come in” he asked, “it’s a bit chilly outside”. “Please do comrade and take a sit”. “May I make a cup of tea for you.” Having felt guilty, I asked apologetically. “Yes, it would be nice to have a hot cup of tea in a chilly morning like this. But no sugar. We must leave sugar only for kids.” He said making his beautiful laugh. I prepared him a mug of tea with no sugar but with Highland fresh milk.

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August 17, 2022 · 1:40 pm

China lands on the Moon in Hambantota

Fair Dinkum, with the highlighting being her/his emphasis not The Editor’s 

Captain Zhang Hogwang of China’s research and survey vessel, the Yuan Wang 5, waves after disembarking from the ship upon arrival at Hambantota port on August 16, 2022. Photo: VCG

The docking of the Chinese research vessel Yuan Wang 5 at Hambantota port was a momentous occasion in the history of Sri Lanka, having gained global attention like it was the first moon landing.  All of this attention is due to the unnecessary meddling into Sri Lanka’s internal affairs by India and the United States.

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August 3, 2022 · 3:02 pm

Indrajit: Sri Lanka between Abyss and Quicksand

Karan Thapar, in article headed “ “If Ranil Doesn’t Take Tough Steps, Sri Lanka Economy Could Fall into Abyss: Former Central Bank Head”

Indrajit Coomaraswamy identified four critical steps that the government must immediately start to implement as the first stage of restoring the economy to better health.

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