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Ambassador of the US to Sri Lanka and the Maldives Alaina B. Teplitz[/caption]
Ambassador of the US to Sri Lanka and the Maldives Alaina B. Teplitz has called on Sri Lanka to utilise more fully the Generalised System of Preferences (GSP) offered by the US Government.
“Trade can still grow and one way Sri Lankan companies can maximise trade with the US is to take better advantage of existing trade preferences. For example, did you know that exports under the Generalised System of Preferences or GSP accounted for 5.32% of the total exports to the US in 2019? That seems like a very small percentage. A total of $ 196 million in exports were eligible for cost savings under GSP,” she said.
Teplitz was addressing the 4th Annual General Meeting of Sri Lanka – USA Business Council (SLUSABC), which functions under the aegis of the Ceylon Chamber of Commerce, as the Chief Guest on 17 September.
She also encouraged local businesses to market these benefits to attract more buyers.
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Seated from left: Ceylon Chamber of Commerce Manager Business Council Dinithi Dias; SLUSABC Vice President Sanji De Silva; Ambassador of the US to Sri Lanka and the Maldives Alaina B. Teplitz; SLUSABC President Dr. Asanka Ratnayake; SLUSABC Treasurer Mohan Mendis; and SLUSABC Immediate Past President Samantha Rajapaksha. Standing from left: Charithra Hettiarachchi of HVA Foods PLC; Waruna Randeewa of CBL Natural Foods (Pvt.) Ltd.; Tilak Gunawardena of MAC Holdings (Pvt.) Ltd.; Sanjaya Samararatne of Global Rubber Industries (Pvt.) Ltd.; Shane Perera of Regency Teas (Pvt.) Ltd.; Indika Kulathunga of Dipped Products PLC; and Farhath Armith of Fanam International (Pvt.) Ltd.[/caption]
“This is a marketing advantage that Sri Lankan firms should be broadcasting to prospective buyers as a reason to buy from these companies. It’s an advantage that, in fact, we do not want to be kept a secret. We want Sri Lankan businesses to know about these opportunities, which is why the embassy facilitated discussions as recently as last week explaining how GSP exporters can take better advantage of GSP benefits and we’ll continue to discuss that topic if there is further interest.”
Hayleys Advantis Ltd. Director Dr. Asanka Ratnayake was re-elected as the President of the SLUSABC for 2020/2021 at the AGM, and in his address he said that Sri Lanka should capitalise on its geopolitical positioning to reap long-term economic benefits.
“The pandemic gives us reasons to be optimistic. In recent years, Sri Lanka has been increasingly featured in discussions on the Asian geopolitical environment. Undoubtedly our strategic location across the Indian Ocean sea lanes has been attracting the interest of major powers such as India, China, and more recently, Japan and the US. Whilst this has its own merits and demerits, I hope Sri Lanka will be able to withstand, to play a new role on Asia’s rapidly changing geopolitical stage and convert it to the country’s own long-term economic benefit,” Dr. Ratnayake said.
Sanji De Silva of Bileeta (Pvt.) Ltd. was elected as the Vice President and Mohan Mendis of Heritage Teas (Pvt.) Ltd. was elected as the Treasurer for the period 2020/2021. CBL Natural Foods (Pvt.) Ltd., Dipped Products PLC, Fanam International (Pvt.) Ltd., Global Rubber Industries (Pvt.) Ltd., HVA Foods PLC, MAC Holdings (Pvt.) Ltd. and Regency Teas (Pvt.) Ltd. were elected from the membership to serve on the Executive Committee of the Council.
Ambassador of the US to Sri Lanka and the Maldives Alaina B. Teplitz[/caption]
Ambassador of the US to Sri Lanka and the Maldives Alaina B. Teplitz has called on Sri Lanka to utilise more fully the Generalised System of Preferences (GSP) offered by the US Government.
“Trade can still grow and one way Sri Lankan companies can maximise trade with the US is to take better advantage of existing trade preferences. For example, did you know that exports under the Generalised System of Preferences or GSP accounted for 5.32% of the total exports to the US in 2019? That seems like a very small percentage. A total of $ 196 million in exports were eligible for cost savings under GSP,” she said.
Teplitz was addressing the 4th Annual General Meeting of Sri Lanka – USA Business Council (SLUSABC), which functions under the aegis of the Ceylon Chamber of Commerce, as the Chief Guest on 17 September.
She also encouraged local businesses to market these benefits to attract more buyers.
[caption id="attachment_100352" align="alignright" width="377"] Seated from left: Ceylon Chamber of Commerce Manager Business Council Dinithi Dias; SLUSABC Vice President Sanji De Silva; Ambassador of the US to Sri Lanka and the Maldives Alaina B. Teplitz; SLUSABC President Dr. Asanka Ratnayake; SLUSABC Treasurer Mohan Mendis; and SLUSABC Immediate Past President Samantha Rajapaksha. Standing from left: Charithra Hettiarachchi of HVA Foods PLC; Waruna Randeewa of CBL Natural Foods (Pvt.) Ltd.; Tilak Gunawardena of MAC Holdings (Pvt.) Ltd.; Sanjaya Samararatne of Global Rubber Industries (Pvt.) Ltd.; Shane Perera of Regency Teas (Pvt.) Ltd.; Indika Kulathunga of Dipped Products PLC; and Farhath Armith of Fanam International (Pvt.) Ltd.[/caption]
“This is a marketing advantage that Sri Lankan firms should be broadcasting to prospective buyers as a reason to buy from these companies. It’s an advantage that, in fact, we do not want to be kept a secret. We want Sri Lankan businesses to know about these opportunities, which is why the embassy facilitated discussions as recently as last week explaining how GSP exporters can take better advantage of GSP benefits and we’ll continue to discuss that topic if there is further interest.”
Hayleys Advantis Ltd. Director Dr. Asanka Ratnayake was re-elected as the President of the SLUSABC for 2020/2021 at the AGM, and in his address he said that Sri Lanka should capitalise on its geopolitical positioning to reap long-term economic benefits.
“The pandemic gives us reasons to be optimistic. In recent years, Sri Lanka has been increasingly featured in discussions on the Asian geopolitical environment. Undoubtedly our strategic location across the Indian Ocean sea lanes has been attracting the interest of major powers such as India, China, and more recently, Japan and the US. Whilst this has its own merits and demerits, I hope Sri Lanka will be able to withstand, to play a new role on Asia’s rapidly changing geopolitical stage and convert it to the country’s own long-term economic benefit,” Dr. Ratnayake said.
Sanji De Silva of Bileeta (Pvt.) Ltd. was elected as the Vice President and Mohan Mendis of Heritage Teas (Pvt.) Ltd. was elected as the Treasurer for the period 2020/2021. CBL Natural Foods (Pvt.) Ltd., Dipped Products PLC, Fanam International (Pvt.) Ltd., Global Rubber Industries (Pvt.) Ltd., HVA Foods PLC, MAC Holdings (Pvt.) Ltd. and Regency Teas (Pvt.) Ltd. were elected from the membership to serve on the Executive Committee of the Council.