US investment legend hails Sri Lanka's post-war potential

Duminda ARIYASINGHE

One of the most respected global investors has hailed Sri Lanka's post-war investment potential.

Jim Rogers, who co-founded the legendary Quantum Fund with George Soros and now runs the Singapore-based Rogers Holdings told an Economic Forum in Singapore on Wednesday that China and Sri Lanka offer better investment opportunities than India.

"You've got the wind in your face doing business in India, you've got the wind in your back in China," Rogers said according to Bloomberg, adding that he sees 'great, cheap' opportunities in Sri Lanka because of 'dramatic' changes in the country after the end of the war.

Rogers is noted internationally for his ability to divine the future.

In 1970, he co-founded the Quantum Fund with Soros.

In the next 10 years, the fund gained 4200 percent while the benchmark US Standard & Poor index advanced less than 50 percent.

In 2007, Rogers moved from the US to Singapore from where he manages his investments: "If you were smart in 1807, you moved to London; if you were smart in 1907, you moved to New York City; and if you are smart in 2007, you move to Asia."

Rogers is highly influential - in addition to being a Guest Professor at the prestigious Columbia University Graduate School of Business, he appears regularly on US financial news channels such as CNBC and Bloomberg TV.

Sri Lanka's Central Bank said this week the economy may grow between 4 percent and 5 percent, compared with an April forecast of 2.5 percent.

The benchmark idex has jumped 12 percent this week, taking its gains this year to 43 percent, the eighth-best performer globally, after the military said it killed the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam leader Velupillai Prabhakaran.