Sri Lanka has not considered selling bonds in the international market but it is an option and has not been ruled out by the South Asian country, said its central bank governor yesterday.
"We are doing an investor update now. So the investors are kept informed what the country's situation is," said Ajith Nivard Cabraal a day after Sri Lanka and the International Monetary Fund reached a deal on a $2.5 billion (Dh9.1bn) loan.
"There are syndicated loans. There are Sri Lanka Development Bonds. There is sovereign bonds," he said while outlining the funding options. "The general finding from the investor update was that the appetite is favourable."
A source said officials were meeting global investors in New York, Boston and London this week to apprise them of the situation in the country following the end of its 25-year civil war.
But the source said no mandate had been issued and no terms were discussed for a possible bond sale. This follows meetings with investors in Hong Kong and Singapore last week. The meetings are being arranged by JPMorgan and HSBC.
Investors sentiment towards Sri Lanka has improved sharply in recent months. On Monday, Sri Lanka and the International Monetary Fund reached a $2.5bn loan deal to help the country cope with the global financial crisis and pay for post-war rebuilding.
The country's $500 million in five-year bonds issued in 2007 – Colombo's last global bond offering – are yielding about 10.75 per cent, above the yield at issue of 8.25 per cent but much lower than a high of 25 per cent reached last year.
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