Asia Economy

The British brought tea to Sri Lanka in the mid-1800s and, quickly overtaking coffee, it has grown into one of the island nation’s most notable exports. Sri Lanka’s single-origin tea, Ceylon Tea, is highly sought after in international markets and well known companies like Dilmah sell it at a premium all over the world. However, while tea as a...

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ETIQUETTE: Business settings remain formal with small cultural nuances, but leeway is given to foreigners in this respect. While men normally shake hands with other men, and women with women, some women may not wish to shake hands with men outside of family circles. It is best to wait and see if a...

Sri Lanka has had a poor history of revenue collection. Tax revenues as a percentage of GDP have declined from above 20% in the early 1990s to about 12.2% in 2014. In comparison, Malaysia and Thailand are at about 15%, while Singapore is about 13%. India, however, is at 10%, although it also contains a far larger informal economy.