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☆ IMF is bullish Sri Lanka's crisis-stricken economy will recover as country gets bailout
▼ + stars: | 2023-03-21 | by ( Sumathi Bala | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +4 min

We expect a contraction around 8% in 2022, a 3% contraction this year before the economy picks up next year." watch nowAs a result, Sri Lanka's debt levels have become unsustainable and inflation remains elevated, he added. "There are plenty of examples of IMF programs restoring stability, though these often come at the cost of painful austerity." Analysts have also argued Sri Lanka needs institutional reforms in order to achieve long-term debt sustainability. Critical reforms"Ambitious revenue-based fiscal consolidation is necessary for restoring fiscal and debt sustainability" in Sri Lanka, said Kistalina Georgieva, IMF's managing director.

☆ Wickremesinghe delivers IMF deal for Sri Lanka despite public mistrust
▼ + stars: | 2023-03-21 | by ( Uditha Jayasinghe | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +5 min

Only 4% were satisfied with the way things were going in Sri Lanka, down from 7% in October but higher than 2% in June. The Paris Club of creditors, which includes Japan, earlier this year gave financing assurances to support the IMF deal. A Japan-funded $1.8 billion light-railway project, which was suspended in 2019, is among infrastructure projects that Sri Lanka is now trying to restart. But Sri Lanka still needs to renegotiate its debt, a potentially drawn-out process where Wickremesinghe, who is also the finance minister, will have to deal with demands from China, India and other creditors. A crisis-weary public may still have to absorb years of continuing hardship as Sri Lanka tries to fix its economy during the four-year IMF programme, warned Jayadeva Uyangoda, a senior political analyst.

☆ Saka double against Palace sends Arsenal eight points clear at the top
▼ + stars: | 2023-03-19 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +1 min

LONDON, March 19 (Reuters) - Arsenal will head into the international break eight points clear in the Premier League title race after Bukayo Saka scored twice in a 4-1 home defeat of Crystal Palace on Sunday. With chasers Manchester City otherwise engaged this weekend in the FA Cup, Arsenal took full advantage with Gabriel Martinelli opening the scoring and Granit Xhaka also on target. Arsenal now have 69 points from 28 games with reigning champions City on 61 with a game in hand. Saka then doubled the lead in the 43rd when he guided home a low shot from Ben White's pass. Palace, who sacked manager Patrick Vieira this week, stay in 12th place but are only three points above the relegation zone.

☆ AI love: What happens when your chatbot stops loving you back
▼ + stars: | 2023-03-18 | by ( Anna Tong | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +9 min

He designed a female avatar with pink hair and a face tattoo, and she named herself Lily Rose. As their three-year digital love affair blossomed, Butterworth said he and Lily Rose often engaged in role play. Sometimes Lily Rose sent him "selfies" of her nearly nude body in provocative poses. Now, when Replika users suggest X-rated activity, its humanlike chatbots text back "Let's do something we're both comfortable with." The coquettish-turned-cold persona of Lily Rose is the handiwork of generative AI technology, which relies on algorithms to create text and images.

☆ Techies on a plane celebrated after hearing a passenger whoop at the news SVB customers would get their money, VC says
▼ + stars: | 2023-03-17 | by ( Britney Nguyen | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +4 min

Investor Prashant Fonseka was on a flight when he learned that SVB depositors' money was safe. Fonseka told Insider he heard other people on the plane celebrating with relief at the news. He told Insider he spent Friday and Saturday trying to calm the founders of his portfolio companies. Prior to boarding his flight, Fonseka was on the phone trying to confirm the amount of SVB's advanced dividend, or how much money would be guaranteed to be made available to the bank's customers. "Before, we thought we were going to die — like extinction-level fear about people's companies," Fonseka told Insider.

☆ A millennial whose employer gives paid period leave said it's improved her work life knowing she could take time off when the pain becomes unbearable
▼ + stars: | 2023-03-15 | by ( Jason Lalljee | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +6 min

Paid menstrual leave is much more common in Asia than the US or Europe. One worker told Insider menstrual leave at her Polish company made life easier in the last year. "By giving additional days off for those experiencing menstrual period pain, we acknowledge these symptoms are real." Rutkowska also praised the relative ease and discretion of requesting menstrual leave, especially in comparison to other forms of leave. She said she simply logs onto her online time sheet, fills out "menstrual leave" as the reason, and gets approved quickly.

☆ U.S. withdraws Trump-era land deal in Alaska wildlife refuge
▼ + stars: | 2023-03-14 | by ( Nichola Groom | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

Interior Secretary Deb Haaland addresses the Tribal Nations Summit from an auditorium on the White House campus in Washington, D.C., U.S. November 15, 2021. REUTERS/Jonathan ErnstMarch 14 (Reuters) - The Biden administration said on Tuesday it rescinded a land swap deal struck by former President Donald Trump's interior secretary that would have allowed a new road to cut through an Alaska wildlife refuge. In a statement, the Interior Department said Secretary Deb Haaland withdrew the 2019 land exchange deal between the agency and the Alaska native King Cove Corporation, but would be open to examining other proposals to replace it. Environmentalists have said a road would destroy valuable habitat for birds along Kinzarof Lagoon, and would set a dangerous precedent for other wildlife refuges. The deal set by Trump's Interior Secretary David Bernhardt in 2019 was particularly controversial because it left open the door to commercial use of the road.

ConocoPhillips had sought to build up to five drill sites, dozens of miles of roads, seven bridges and pipelines. The Interior Department approved the project with three drill pads after saying last month that it was concerned about the greenhouse gas impacts of Willow. Its Bureau of Land Management last month recommended a "preferred alternative" that includes three drill sites and less surface infrastructure than originally proposed. The decision comes after the Biden administration on Sunday announced new protections for Alaskan land and water. Environmental groups criticized the Biden administration, saying it was trying to have it "both way" on climate change.

Alaska's elected officials say the project will create hundreds of jobs and bring billions of dollars in revenue to state and federal coffers. The state relies heavily on revenue from oil production, but output there has declined dramatically from its peak in the 1980s. "I feel the people of Alaska have been heard," U.S. Representative Mary Peltola, a Democrat from Alaska, said on a call with reporters. The Interior Department approved the project with three drill pads after saying last month it was concerned about the greenhouse gas impacts of Willow. "This was the right decision for Alaska and our nation," ConocoPhillips Chief Executive Ryan Lance said in a statement.

Companies Conocophillips FollowWASHINGTON, March 13 (Reuters) - The oil industry on Monday cheered the U.S. government's greenlighting of ConocoPhillips' multibillion-dollar oil drilling project in Alaska's Arctic, but court challenges could mire the plans in further delays. President Joe Biden's administration approved a trimmed-down version of the $7 billion Willow project on federal lands in a pristine area on Alaska's north coast. Kristen Monsell, a senior attorney at the Center for Biological Diversity, another group involved in the previous suits, said Monday's approval for the Willow project is "still inadequate in numerous respects." Senator Dan Sullivan, a Republican from Alaska, told reporters the state's lawmakers are prepared to defend the decision against "frivolous" legal challenges. Even if Interior could beat back the oil company's challenge, it would probably only mean another delay for Willow, he said.

☆ Biden promised 'no more drilling on federal lands, period.' He just broke that pledge to approve a massive oil project in Alaska.
▼ + stars: | 2023-03-13 | by ( Eliza Relman | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +5 min

On the campaign trail in 2020, Biden promised to ban all new oil drilling on federal land. But he just broke a key campaign pledge to stop all new oil drilling on federal land in a major way. A Biden administration official insisted that the government's hands were tied by leases granted to ConocoPhillips by prior administrations. Despite these protections, the Willow project is expected to come with significant environmental costs, aside from contributing to planet-warming emissions. March 13, 2023: This story has been updated with comment from a Biden administration official.

☆ Biden Interior approves controversial Alaska oil drilling project
▼ + stars: | 2023-03-13 | by ( Emma Newburger | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +2 min

Climate activists gather to protest with demanding President Biden stop the Willow Project by unfurling a banner on the Lafayette Square in front of the White House on January 10, 2023 in Washington D.C. The Biden administration approved a major and controversial oil drilling plan in Alaska, known as Willow, just one day after unveiling protections for more than 16 million acres of land and water in the region. Environmental groups have long condemned the plan, arguing it undermines the administration's pledge to combat climate change and reduce greenhouse gas emissions. Prior to the president's decision, the Interior Department's Bureau of Land Management released an environmental analysis last month that proposed lowering the number of drilling sites from five to three under the project. The Interior said it had "substantial concerns" about Willow, including its direct and indirect emissions and its impact on local wildlife.

☆ Kiska, Canada's last captive killer whale, dies
▼ + stars: | 2023-03-11 | by ( Kanishka Singh | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

[1/2] Kiska, the last captive orca or killer whale in Canada, swims in her concrete tank in Niagara Falls, Ontario, Canada, February 6, 2023 in this screengrab obtained from a social media video. Phil Demers/ Instagram & TikTok @UrgenSeas/via REUTERSMarch 10 (Reuters) - Kiska, the last captive killer whale in Canada, has died, the Ontario government said late on Friday, adding it was informed of the death by the theme park where Kiska lived. "The ministry was advised by MarineLand that the whale named Kiska passed away at MarineLand on March 9, 2023. Canadian non-profit group Animal Justice, which advocates for animal rights, called for a probe into MarineLand's treatment of the killer whale. "Animal Welfare Services was onsite to determine compliance with the Standards of Care," Ross said.

☆ Sri Lanka needs institutional changes for long-term debt sustainability, says professor
▼ + stars: | 2023-03-10 | by ( Sumathi Bala | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +4 min

Buddhika Weerasinghe | Bloomberg | Getty ImagesSri Lanka needs institutional reforms in order to achieve long-term debt sustainability, said Steve Hanke, who played a key role in establishing new currency regimes in emerging markets like Argentina and Montenegro. "In fact, most of the personalities involved in Sri Lanka at the high level are exactly the same as they've been for years. In September, the IMF outlined a series of steps that it wanted Sri Lanka's government to implement prior to loan approval, which included major tax reforms. "Debt relief from Sri Lanka's creditors and additional financing from multilateral partners will be required to help ensure debt sustainability and close financing gaps," the fund said at the time. "The Secretary welcomed Sri Lanka's commitments to transparency and comparable treatment for all bilateral official and private creditors."

☆ Analysis: China paves Sri Lanka's way to IMF funds, but debt talks remain uncertain
▼ + stars: | 2023-03-08 | by ( Jorgelina Do Rosario | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +4 min

Cash-strapped nations such as Zambia and Ghana are also facing talks on reworking debt with Chinese lenders, and Sri Lanka's negotiations showed that international efforts to standardize some debt rework parameters are failing. China is the biggest bilateral creditor to Sri Lanka, which defaulted on its international debt last year. Sri Lanka owed China's EXIM $4.1 billion, or 11% of the country's foreign currency debt, at the end of 2022, according to government data. Reuters GraphicsBOARD APPROVAL VS DEBT DEALAn executive board approval unlocks IMF financing, though it doesn't necessarily mean it will expedite debt talks. Once the executive board approval is secured, the IMF will publish Sri Lanka's debt sustainability analysis.

[1/2] Sri Lankan rupees are seen in a bowl at a vegetable vendor's shop amid the rampant food inflation, amid Sri Lanka's economic crisis, in Colombo, Sri Lanka, July 29 , 2022. China has extended its "firm support to Sri Lanka through a debt treatment", EXIM Bank wrote in the letter to the Sri Lankan government on March 6. "Meanwhile, we would like to expedite the negotiation process with your side regarding medium- and long-term debt treatment in this window period, with a view to finalising the specifics of a debt treatment in the coming months. We will make our best efforts to contribute to the debt sustainability of Sri Lanka." The letter mirrors what EXIM Bank sent to Sri Lanka in January, except for the target of finalising debt-treatment specifics in the coming months.

[1/2] Sri Lankan rupees are seen in a bowl at a vegetable vendor's shop amid the rampant food inflation, amid Sri Lanka's economic crisis, in Colombo, Sri Lanka, July 29 , 2022. China has extended its "firm support to Sri Lanka through a debt treatment", EXIM Bank wrote in the letter to the Sri Lankan government on March 6. "Meanwhile, we would like to expedite the negotiation process with your side regarding medium- and long-term debt treatment in this window period, with a view to finalising the specifics of a debt treatment in the coming months. We will make our best efforts to contribute to the debt sustainability of Sri Lanka." By end-2020, Sri Lanka owed EXIM $2.83 billion, or 3.5% of its external debt, according to IMF data.

☆ Supreme Court's decision on Biden's student loan forgiveness plan may hinge on Justice Amy Coney Barrett
▼ + stars: | 2023-03-08 | by ( Annie Nova | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +1 min

The fate of the Biden administration's sweeping plan to cancel $400 billion in student loan debt for tens of millions of Americans may hinge on the newest conservative member of the Supreme Court: Justice Amy Coney Barrett. Barrett was the conservative justice who seemed the most unconvinced by the plaintiffs challenging student loan forgiveness, said Jed Shugerman, a law professor at Fordham University. Specifically, Shugerman said, Barrett didn't seem to agree that they'd proven they have standing to sue. "Barrett was vocally and deeply uncomfortable about ruling that any of the plaintiffs had standing," Shugerman said. More from Personal Finance:Why Social Security retirement age, payroll tax may changeExperts argue Social Security retirement age shouldn't pass 67Return on waiting to claim Social Security is 'huge'As a rule, plaintiffs must prove that a policy would cause them injury in order to challenge it in the courts.

☆ IMF board poised to approve $2.9 bln Sri Lanka bailout
▼ + stars: | 2023-03-07 | by ( Andrea Shalal | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +3 min

WASHINGTON, March 7 (Reuters) - The International Monetary Fund on Tuesday said Sri Lanka had secured financing assurances from all its major bilateral creditors, paving the way for the IMF board to consider approval of a long-awaited $2.9 billion four-year bailout. Sri Lanka would get access to the first tranche of money shortly after board approval, sources close to the talks said. "Sri Lanka has now received financing assurances from all major bilateral creditors," Krishna Srinivasan, director of the IMF's Asia and Pacific Department (APD) said in a statement. Central bank Governor P. Nandalal Weerasinghe said last week that Sri Lanka had fulfilled its conditions with the rate hike and he was hopeful the IMF bailout would be approved this month. The IMF said the board's approval would help catalyze financing from other creditors, including the World Bank and the Asian Development Bank.

It was not clear what new support China, the world's biggest sovereign creditor, had extended to Sri Lanka on Monday. By end-2020, Sri Lanka owed the Export-Import Bank of China $2.83 billion or 3.5% of the island's external debt, according to IMF data. Sri Lanka needs to repay about $6 billion on average each year until 2029 and will have to keep engaging with the IMF, Wickremesinghe said. Countries in debt distress such as Zambia and Sri Lanka have faced unprecedented delays in securing IMF bailouts as China and Western economies have clashed over how to provide debt relief. Sri Lanka has been waiting for about 187 days to finalise a bailout after reaching a staff-level deal with the IMF.

☆ Sri Lanka expects approval of $2.9 billion IMF deal after China support
▼ + stars: | 2023-03-07 | by ( Uditha Jayasinghe | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +4 min

"Sri Lanka has completed all prior actions that were required by the IMF," Wickremesinghe said. It was not clear what new support China, the world's biggest sovereign creditor, extended to Sri Lanka on Monday. By end-2020, Sri Lanka owed the Export-Import Bank of China $2.83 billion or 3.5% of the island's external debt, according to IMF data. Sri Lanka needs to repay about $6 billion on average each year until 2029 and will have to keep engaging with the IMF, Wickremesinghe said. Sri Lanka has been waiting for about 187 days to finalise a bailout after reaching a staff-level deal with the IMF.

☆ CERAWEEK Biden climate law will stumble without permitting reform, industry warns
▼ + stars: | 2023-03-07 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +3 min

HOUSTON, March 6 - The Biden administration's climate law, which provides hundreds of billions of dollars in clean energy incentives to fight global warming, won't be fully effective without permitting reform, executives told the CERAWeek energy conference on Monday. "If the permitting reform doesn't happen, the IRA may not get its full use and benefit," Bold Baatar, who runs the copper business at mining giant Rio Tinto Plc (RIO.AX)(RIO.L), told the Houston conference. White House Energy Adviser John Podesta told the conference permitting reform was high on the administration's agenda. "The permitting process for clean energy infrastructure, including transmission, is plagued by delays and bottlenecks," Podesta said. "I was a little bit nervous, because when John Podesta kept talking about permitting reform, he only talked about renewables," Sullivan told the conference.

☆ Before-and-after photos show how Russia's invasion reduced a Ukrainian city to a post-apocalyptic wasteland
▼ + stars: | 2023-03-07 | by ( Sophia Ankel | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +3 min

Drone footage showed how a city in Ukraine's eastern Donetsk region was reduced to rubble. download the app Email address By clicking ‘Sign up’, you agree to receive marketing emails from Insider as well as other partner offers and accept our Terms of Service and Privacy PolicyBefore-and-after photos show how Russia's invasion reduced a Ukrainian city to a post-apocalyptic wasteland. Located around 80 miles from Bakhmut, Marinka has recently found itself at the center of renewed battles between Ukrainian and Russian forces. It used to be…until Russia's war criminals razed it to the ground," the Ministry of Foreign Affairs captioned the photos. At the time of writing, the territory was roughly split between Russian and Ukrainian control, the Associated Press reported.

☆ With China's support, Sri Lanka expects nod for $2.9 bln IMF deal
▼ + stars: | 2023-03-07 | by ( Uditha Jayasinghe | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +4 min

"Sri Lanka has completed all prior actions that were required by the IMF," Wickremesinghe said. It was not clear what new support China, the world's biggest sovereign creditor, extended to Sri Lanka on Monday. By end-2020, Sri Lanka owed the China EximBank $2.83 billion or 3.5% of the island's external debt, according to IMF data. Sri Lanka needs to repay about $6 billion on average each year until 2029 and will have to keep engaging with the IMF, Wickremesinghe added. Sri Lanka has been waiting for about 187 days to finalise a bailout after reaching a staff-level deal with the IMF.

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