FINANCIAL NEWS

Sri Lanka buys Emirates stake in SriLankan Airlines

07 Jul 2010

(MENAFN) Sri Lanka announced that it has bought Emirates Airline?s stake in SriLankan Airlines for $53 million, about a third of the price that Dubai-based Emirates valued the stake at two years ago, Reuters reported.

The government acquired the 44 percent stake through Bank of Ceylon, the island?s biggest state-owned lender, Treasury Secretary PB Jayasundera said in the capital Colombo, without elaboration. The government previously held 51 percent of the flag carrier, with the rest owned by staff.

The deal may help Sri Lanka boost tourism following the end of a 26-year civil war and position the island to benefit from rising travel in India, the world?s second-most populous country. E

mirates ended a 10-year management agreement with SriLankan in 2008 when it valued its stake at $150 million.

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