Sri Lanka's new beginning

Sri Lanka’s new beginning

Oliver Bell, manager of the T. Rowe Price Frontier Markets Equity fund, explains why Sri Lanka is the next Asian frontier market that warrants investor attention.

Sri Lanka is the only country in South Asia that is currently rated ‘high’ on the Human Development index, with a rating ahead of India, Indonesia, Thailand, and even China. The World Bank’s Doing Business report also ranks Sri Lanka 54th in ‘ease of starting a business’ – ahead of most developing countries. Notably, although Sri Lanka’s population of 20 million is relatively small, its per capita GDP, at $3,000, is much higher than India ($1,500), Bangladesh ($800) and Vietnam ($1,700). It places the nation in the same league as the Philippines ($2,600) and Indonesia ($3,600). Furthe...