Countdown to FACETS 2026
Sri Lanka is preparing to host the international gem and jewellery exhibition titled “FACETS Sri Lanka 2026” on January 3-5, 2026 at the Cinnamon Life. Colombo.
Sri Lanka’s vehicle import boom faces 2026 revenue shock
Sri Lanka’s booming vehicle import sector, which played a pivotal role in driving tax revenues to record highs in 2025, is bracing for a notable slowdown next year, raising concerns about potential fiscal gaps. An analysis by the Parliamentary Committee on Public Finance (COPF) shows that nearly Rs. 600 billion of the Rs 1 trillion [...]
RPC estate workers’ wages scale up from January
Sri Lanka’s tea plantation companies will be supported by the government in increasing wages of estate workers commencing with the January payment due on February 10. Industry spokesperson Dr. Roshan Rajadurai speaking with the Sunday Times Business said that commencing with the January wages the Regional Plantation Companies (RPCs) will pay the increased wages per [...]
Rs.20 m digital campaign to sustain tourist arrivals
The government has already planned to roll out a digital media campaign this week scheduled to go ahead until end January at a cost of Rs.20 million. Sri Lanka Tourism Development Authority (SLTDA) Chairman Buddhika Hewawasam speaking with the Sunday Times Business said that they are carrying out a target marketing campaign through this digital [...]
Infrastructure bonds to be a reality
Government-backed Infrastructure Bonds will soon be a reality, to draw both domestic and international investors to confront the funding challenges in the country, a top official said. “We plan to introduce infrastructure bonds,” Finance and Planning Deputy Minister Dr. Anil Jayantha Fernando told the Sunday Times Business on Wednesday. It will be done in the [...]
Kudos to migrant workers
I was planning to write about the need for hotels to channel a small portion of their seasonal profits to those affected by Cyclone Ditwah, when I received a call on Thursday. It was my friend, jolly-mood economist friend, Sammiya (short for Samson), suggesting instead that I discuss the role of migrant workers vis-à-vis the [...]
One move, many ripples
Over the past 25 years, China’s GDP has surged from just above US$1 trillion to more than $18 trillion. No other major economy in the world has matched China’s scale and speed of growth during the first quarter of the 21st century. But China has a problem! One of the serious challenges that China has [...]
Regulation Roulette: Nobody to take the fall for scams
The Securities and Exchange Commission of Sri Lanka (SEC) has had several meetings with the Central Bank (CB) and its agency fighting money laundering and terrorist financing, Financial Intelligence Unit (FIU), concerning two major scams: ‘Blue Ocean Securities Limited’ and ‘Gladius South Asia’. “We have had meetings and given all the relevant details on these [...]
Disasters are upending farming: Digital tools offer a path forward
Every planting season now begins with a question: What will the weather bring? For farmers, particularly smallholders, decisions made at planting determine livelihoods, but the results largely depend on weather conditions that are increasingly difficult to predict. Across continents, farmers are learning that as weather patterns become more extreme, frequent, and unpredictable, stable seasonal patterns [...]
Pyramid Wilmar donates Rs. 50 m for emergency relief
Pyramid Wilmar has donated Rs. 50 million to the Presidential Secretariat to aid the government’s relief effort towards the victims of the recent ‘Ditwah’ cyclone. In a media release, Group Managing Director of Pyramid Wilmar (Pvt) Ltd M. Sajjad Mawzoon said, “In light of all affected individuals and families, we stand with the people of [...]
ComBank and CBA unveil PAX E700 all-in-one Smart POS
‘PAX E700’ a versatile new Android-powered smart electronic POS device has been introduced in Sri Lanka by the Commercial Bank of Ceylon in partnership with Ceylon Business Appliances (CBA). Designed to empower small and medium enterprises (SMEs) by streamlining daily operations, digitising transactions, and enhance the customer checkout experience, this Smart POS seamlessly merges the [...]
Link – Best Exporter – Herbal and Ayurveda Products at Presidential Export Awards
Link Natural Products (Pvt) Ltd has once again been honoured with the Best Exporter Award – Herbal & Ayurveda Products Category (Sectoral) at the 27th prestigious Presidential Export Awards (PEA) for the financial year 2024/25. The achievement of Link Natural Products in the Herbal & Ayurvedic sector demonstrates the company’s dedication to quality, innovation, and [...]
DHL Express celebrates 45 years of service in Sri Lanka
DHL Express is marking its 45 years of operations in Sri Lanka, connecting local businesses and communities to global opportunities through its logistics network. In company media release, Ken Lee, CEO, Asia Pacific, DHL Express, said, “For 45 years, DHL Sri Lanka has been connecting businesses and communities with the world, driving trade, growth, and [...]
Lion Brewery recognised at Presidential Export Awards
Lion Brewery (Ceylon) PLC has been named ‘Best Exporter – Beverages’ at the 27th Presidential Export Awards 2024/25, held recently at the BMICH, Colombo. The accolade, conferred by the Sri Lanka Export Development Board (EDB), represents the highest national recognition for export excellence, and acknowledges the company’s leadership in beverage exports and its contribution to [...]
Cyclone Ditwah exposes deep issues in Sri Lanka’s MSME sector
The Micro, Small, and Medium-sized Enterprise (MSME) sector contributing over 52 per cent of Sri Lanka’s GDP and accounting for nearly 75 per cent of the country’s entrepreneurial base has once again proven to be both the backbone and the most vulnerable pillar of the national economy. Already weakened by years of economic crisis and [...]
Understanding the new Microfinance & Credit Regulatory Authority Act
Sri Lanka’s microfinance and moneylending sector is poised for a major transformation with the introduction of the Microfinance and Credit Regulatory Authority Act, 2025. This landmark legislation replaces the Microfinance Act No. 6 of 2016, introducing a far more comprehensive and structured regulatory framework aimed at protecting borrowers, strengthening institutions, and enhancing transparency across the [...]
Home Lands wins big at PropertyGuru Asia Property Awards 2025
Home Lands has achieved a historic milestone at the PropertyGuru Asia Property Awards 2025, held in Bangkok, Thailand recently, being crowned “Best Developer, Sri Lanka” for the third consecutive year. Adding to the prestige, Home Lands was also honoured with the highly coveted “Best Lifestyle Developer, Asia” award, an extraordinary achievement for any Sri Lankan [...]
ComBank leads SL’s SME lending for 5th consecutive year
The Commercial Bank of Ceylon has once again emerged as the country’s largest lender to small and medium enterprises (SMEs), retaining its position for the fifth consecutive year, according to the Ministry of Finance’s Final Budget Position Report for 2024. The report shows that Commercial Bank disbursed Rs. 330.9 billion in SME loans in 2024, [...]
Allianz commits €200,000 for Sri Lanka recovery
Germany-based Allianz SE is donating €200,000 to support disaster relief efforts in Sri Lanka. In addition, Allianz SE is also extending its support to Thailand and Indonesia, contributing a further €400,000 to aid disaster relief across Southeast Asia. Torrential rainfalls have triggered severe flooding and landslides across Southeast Asia, leaving more than 1,100 people dead [...]
Emirates and Dubai Humanitarian transport urgent relief aid
Emirates and Dubai Humanitarian have established an air-bridge to Sri Lanka, transporting urgent relief aid to support those affected by the devastating Cyclone Ditwah. For two weeks, Emirates will offer over 100 tonnes of cargo space free of charge across its daily passenger flights to Sri Lanka, enabling Dubai Humanitarian and its associates to transport [...]
Apparel industry back on track after crisis
Sri Lanka’s apparel industry is fully back to work in all but a handful of plants where the flood damage was significant. Those plants are mainly from larger groups and the process of replacing machinery has begun, according to an update issued by the Joint Apparel Association Forum Sri Lanka (JAAF) on the status of [...]
David Pieris invests in Dubai-based Navire Logistics
The David Pieris Group continues to strengthen its international presence with the acquisition of 50 per cent ownership in Navire Logistics Services L.L.C, a reputed logistics company based in Dubai and Oman. This strategic move marks a significant milestone in the group’s journey towards expanding its operations beyond Sri Lanka and positioning itself in the [...]
Evolution Auto’s new, most accessible Electric Double-Cab
Evolution Auto recently launched the Riddara RD6 Active, the country’s latest all-electric double-cab pickup, which was unveiled at the BMICH Motor Show. The RD6 Active, which is designed to combine the practicality of a pickup with SUV-like comfort, is a major milestone in increasing the accessibility, affordability, and relevance of electric double-cabs to Sri Lankan [...]
Hatch launches Sri Lanka’s first Innovation District
Hatch, the nation’s award-winning start-up hub and a driving force behind Sri Lanka’s entrepreneurial ecosystem, is advancing its boldest initiative yet – the creation of the country’s first Innovation District in Colombo 1. The vision was first introduced publicly during the Startup Nation 2025 launch event in March 2025, and reaffirmed at the programme’s culmination [...]
Audit findings reveal systemic mismanagement in fisheries harbours
The fisheries harbour sector in Sri Lanka is increasingly coming to be recognised as a concerned case of the failure of governance, where again and again it has been found wanting in its procurement and financial management procedures by successive audits and inquiries, governance analysts say. At the forefront of all the concerns are the [...]
HNB supports relief work with Rs. 100 m commitment
HNB PLC has contributed of Rs. 100 million towards the Rebuild Sri Lanka Fund, reinforcing its commitment to national recovery efforts following the devastation caused by Cyclone Ditwah. “On behalf of HNB, I wish to convey our solidarity with all our fellow Sri Lankans, especially those severely affected by Cyclone Ditwah. As a home-grown institution, [...]
Growing appetite for unit trusts, industry says
The unit trust industry of Sri Lanka has reported a 16.5 per cent year-over-year growth of its assets under management (AUM) to Rs. 597 billion by the end of November 2025. These assets are currently managed across 85 funds by 16 management companies, industry body, Unit Trust Association of Sri Lanka (UTASL), said in a [...]
Worker voices matter in Sri Lanka’s apparel strategy, union says
Recent calls by industry leaders for Sri Lanka’s apparel sector to move away from volume-based production toward differentiated, high value manufacturing reflects an important strategic shift, a key union has said. However, from a policy and trade governance perspective, this repositioning could not be achieved without recognising the long standing role of trade unions and [...]
Local insurers’ cyclone losses limited, but weaknesses persist-Fitch
Insurance losses arising from recent flooding due to Cyclone Ditwah are likely to be limited for most rated insurers in Sri Lanka, because of low retention levels in the non-motor segment and reinsurance protection, says Fitch Ratings. However, the country’s sole local reinsurer, National Insurance Trust Fund Board (NITF, BBB(lka)/Stable), is more exposed to losses [...]
SL’s first doctor-led elderly care service launched
Supporting families with medically supervised care for elderly individuals in the comfort of their own homes, SLT-MOBITEL and eChannelling PLC, in partnership with medical experts from Golden Years Care, have introduced eHomecare’, Sri Lanka’s first doctor‑led elderly‑care service. The pioneering initiative is designed to address a growing societal need. The service launched by eChannelling, Sri [...]