A market brief each morning, plus company filings and news from across Sri Lanka's stock market. Filter by company, sector and theme, and use sentiment badges to quickly identify Positive or Negative news.
Maersk Singapore MD Rene Piil Pedersen urged Sri Lanka to move beyond transshipment and build a full maritime and logistics ecosystem to capture higher-value activities and attract FDI, citing Singapore's free-trade-zone model and Colombo's strategic location.
A.P. Moller-Maersk Singapore MD Rene Piil Pedersen said Sri Lanka could leverage its strategic location to become a green bunkering hub if green/alternative marine fuels can be produced or sourced competitively, creating jobs and new skills.
The Cabinet approved a five-year $4.01 million Global Network Infrastructure Services contract for SriLankan Airlines to SITA Switzerland SARL, covering 1 Oct 2026-30 Sep 2031. The sole bid was accepted on the recommendation of the High-Level Standing Procurement Committee to secure passenger, ticketing, cargo, departure control and airport systems.
EY GDS leader Bikram Dasgupta urges Sri Lankan youth to build influence by focusing on applied AI, quantum readiness and biotech-combining technology fluency, domain expertise and responsible design to solve local problems and scale solutions, supported by the National AI Strategy and nascent quantum initiatives.
The Institution of Engineers, Sri Lanka will hold the NEC 2026 on 24 September 2026 at Cinnamon Grand Colombo to present four policy papers, on engineering education, energy transition and power-sector reform, transport development and building fire safety, and seek stakeholder action.
Sri Lanka's GDP grew 4.2% year-on-year in Q2 2026 to Rs. 3,029,816 million (2015 prices), with current-price GDP up 11.3% to Rs. 8,254,176 million. Growth was led by Industry (+7.3%) and Services (+2.7%), including construction (+13.9%) and IT consultancy (+10%), while agriculture fell 2.3% and tourism remained subdued.
Prolonged compensation proceedings over the MV X-Press Pearl dispute risk eroding confidence in Colombo as a transshipment hub, threatening Sri Lanka's ~$2bn shipping and logistics sector and jeopardising targets such as the 2026 15m TEU goal after handling 8.29m TEUs in 2025.
IFH KÖLN and Messe Frankfurt's Global Consumer Goods Industry Index (second survey) shows the global business climate remains subdued at 100.4 (vs 100.1 in the first wave) while pressures have shifted to geopolitical uncertainty, rising production/procurement costs and tariffs. Manufacturing respondents citing global uncertainty rose to 84% (from 52%).
Sri Lanka launched 'Gem Sri Lanka 2027' in Bangkok to attract Thai buyers after exports to Thailand more than doubled to over $90m in 2025, with precious and semi-precious stones accounting for almost 70% of those shipments.
The Civil Aviation Authority of Sri Lanka met with Boeing and Emirates to discuss the potential introduction of Emirates' Boeing 777-9 to Sri Lanka, covering regulatory, airworthiness, airport and operational requirements. CAASL signalled a positive intent to facilitate access subject to completion of all applicable safety and regulatory steps.
GS1 Lanka is leading Sri Lanka’s shift to 2D barcodes under the global Sunrise 2027 initiative, with more than 5,500 member companies registered and over 20,000 product records uploaded. It is working with retail and healthcare firms and will introduce a new retail information platform to support the transition.
Sri Lanka and Germany identified practical avenues for cooperation to position Sri Lanka as a competitive maritime, logistics and export hub at a sector-focused briefing in Colombo; attendees included the Foreign Ministry, AHK Sri Lanka, EDB and SLPA, which outlined projects, investment opportunities and export strategy.
SLEIS 2026 (12-13 Oct) will host a session titled "Linking Sri Lanka to Asia's Growth Networks" to examine deepening trade connectivity, attracting investment and integrating into regional value chains. The keynote will be delivered by Standard Chartered CEO India & South Asia P. D. Singh, with government and industry panellists.
The Ministry, with the German Industry & Commerce delegation (AHK Sri Lanka), held a sector briefing on Sept 11 to position Sri Lanka as a competitive maritime, logistics and export hub and to deepen trade, investment and technology cooperation. SLPA outlined upcoming projects and the EDB presented the country's export strategy to identify German-Sri Lankan partnership opportunities.
Infomate Ltd, a wholly owned subsidiary of John Keells Holdings (JKH.N0000), has opened a second regional BPM/BPO office in Kurunegala to expand delivery beyond Colombo and tap regional talent for serving international clients.
Energy Minister Anura Karunathilaka said Sri Lanka is considering options to revise fuel prices after private retailers reported diesel losses of up to Rs.160 per litre; the state-owned CPC faces about a Rs.60/litre diesel loss offset by refinery profits. The government may apply subsidies or set upper/lower retail price limits as possible measures.
The Ceylon Chamber of Commerce will hold the Sri Lanka Economic & Investment Summit 2026 on 12-13 Oct 2026 (theme: Linking Sri Lanka to Asia's Growth Networks) to examine how the country can deepen regional supply-chain integration, improve trade connectivity and attract investment.
Sri Lanka's Director General of Civil Aviation met with ICAO's Capacity Development and Implementation Bureau at DGCA/61 to strengthen cooperation on capacity development, technical assistance and implementation of ICAO SARPs, and discussed the strategic development plan for Mattala Airport.
US Federal Maritime Commission Commissioner Robert J. Harvey praised Sri Lanka's supply-chain resilience and said the FMC is taking an increasingly assertive stance investigating and enforcing against chokepoints that threaten American cargo, while inviting closer bilateral cooperation at the International Maritime Conference 2026 in Colombo.
SLPA Chairman Dr. Parakrama Dissanayake outlined five priorities, resilience, digitalisation, sustainability, human capital development and policy advocacy, to future-proof Sri Lanka's logistics sector at the SLANA AGM, urging freight forwarders to modernise systems and anticipate regulatory changes.
Oil prices slipped on Friday but were up over 7% for the week, Brent $103.88/bbl, WTI $99.15/bbl, as attacks near key Middle East shipping routes and other disruptions pushed U.S. diesel to a record above $6/gal. European Central Bank officials also signalled the possibility of further rate rises if energy-driven inflation persists.
US Federal Maritime Commission Chair Laura DiBella urged Sri Lanka to urgently seize the opportunity to expand Colombo's maritime and logistics hub by strengthening competition, reducing investment risks and encouraging private-sector-led FDI. She noted about 500,000 US-related containers (≈$30bn) move through the Port of Colombo, underscoring the growth potential.
Government aims to lift the maritime sector's contribution to GDP from about 2.5% to 5-10%, Ports Minister Anura Karunathilaka said at the Colombo International Maritime and Logistics Conference. A proposal with international partners will push legal, regulatory and infrastructure reforms to attract private and foreign investment and develop multimodal connectivity to position Colombo as a logistics hub.
A US Federal Maritime Commission delegation led by Chair Laura DiBella visited the Port of Colombo to discuss port operations, capacity expansion, regional port development and strengthening maritime connectivity and supply-chain resilience.
GRI and the Sri Lanka Export Development Board signed a multi-year cooperation agreement on 7 Sep 2026 to strengthen sustainability and impact reporting across Sri Lanka's export ecosystem, with particular emphasis on SMEs. The partnership will build on prior textile/apparel collaboration and align GRI Standards with Sri Lanka's NGRS and IFRS Sustainability Disclosure Standards.
Sri Lanka and Oman held talks to strengthen civil aviation cooperation, focusing on operation and development of Mattala Rajapaksa International Airport and possible resumption/expansion of direct flights to boost tourism and trade.
FitsAir will temporarily suspend Colombo-Dubai flight services from 6 September 2026 and expects to resume by November 2026, subject to developments in the Middle East. The airline said the pause is due to the evolving global situation and apologized for inconvenience to passengers.
The Consulate General of Sri Lanka in Dubai staged the second 'Sri Lanka Beyond Your Dreams' event to showcase tourism, trade and strategic investment and to push a Comprehensive Economic Partnership Agreement (CEPA) with the UAE. Ministers and UAE trade officials highlighted logistics, free zones, technology and Port City Colombo as key avenues to attract GCC investment and strengthen bilateral economic ties.
Cabinet approved establishing a National Trade Negotiation Committee to review existing free trade agreements and guide future bilateral and regional deals, appointing the Trade Secretary as its chair and chief negotiator. It will create 12 subject-specific sub-committees and a Trade Policy Advisory Committee of experts and stakeholders.
The BOI hosted the fifth Sri Lanka-Japan Business Environment Committee where Japanese investors raised operational concerns across manufacturing, logistics, energy, infrastructure and environmental services and government agencies provided responses. The meeting also convened the first Sri Lanka-Japan Joint Working Group on an export‑oriented industrial corridor to advance bilateral industrial and export development.