News & market updates

Asian stocks wobbled after a global tech- and semiconductor-led selloff, with MSCI’s Asia-Pacific ex-Japan index down 0.02%. Market caution was driven by concerns about higher interest rates (Fed/BoJ), falls in oil and gold, and volatility around currencies and tech sector valuations.

First Capital Research: aggregate earnings of 271 listed companies fell 11.4% YoY in the March 2026 quarter (third straight quarter), but underlying earnings rose 30.1% YoY after adjusting for major one-offs. Food, Beverage & Tobacco dragged the aggregate result while retailing and telecom posted strong gains (e.g. UML, DIAL, SLTL, SINS).

A Cabinet-appointed committee reviewing Sri Lanka’s Free Trade Agreements is expected to submit recommendations in July, and an India Trade Desk has been launched to help Sri Lankan firms tap the Indian market. Bilateral trade reached about $5.8bn in 2025, with Sri Lankan exports to India over $1bn and imports $4.3bn.

SJB MP Harsha de Silva urged the government to conclude the Economic and Technology Cooperation Agreement (ETCA) with India to integrate Sri Lankan firms into Indian value chains and attract FDI. He warned delays risk missing India’s growth, called for services-sector safeguards and urged resolution of non-tariff barriers such as certification and logistics.

The IRD enacted broad tax reforms under the Inland Revenue (Amendment) Act No.11/2026 effective 3 June, including new capital gains rates (15% for individuals/partnerships; 30% for trusts, unit trusts, mutual funds and NGOs), expansion of a 5% withholding tax on many professionals, expanded TIN use, unit-trust compliance rules and stronger enforcement.

Dialog Enterprise (Dialog Axiata PLC) has partnered with Prime Lands Residencies PLC to provide high-speed Dialog Fibre connectivity to residents of The Colombo Border development in Peliyagoda. Services include dedicated fibre bandwidth, managed Wi-Fi, IPTV and 24x7 network operations support.

99x's Xians.ai won both the Provincial and National Awards for Best Innovation in Internal Processes, Technology or Framework at the SLASSCOM National Ingenuity Awards 2026. The open-source Agent Control Plane orchestrates and scales agentic AI workflows and is used for internal and customer-facing AI initiatives.

Perituza held an executive breakfast in Colombo with Sri Lankan PR, communications, advertising and marketing leaders to demonstrate practical AI applications for agency workflows, including live demos of AI-assisted development. The firm plans sector-specific follow-ups, next focusing on banking and financial services.

Softlogic Information Technologies achieved Dell Technologies Titanium Partner status and is the sole Titanium Partner in Sri Lanka. The recognition strengthens its strategic partnership with Dell and bolsters the position of parent Softlogic Holdings.

The Thailand–Sri Lanka Business Forum highlighted opportunities from the new Sri Lanka–Thailand FTA, with bilateral trade at USD 649m in 2025 (up 48%) and commitments to boost supply chains, investment and trade across food processing, logistics, IT, healthcare, tourism and manufacturing.

The Industry and Entrepreneurship Development Ministry launched the National SME Strategy Framework – SME NEXUS in Colombo and recognised Chrysalis for its contributions to SME development. Chrysalis was acknowledged for helping simplify business name registration and strengthening the National Industry Database to support SMEs.

The ASPI edged up 0.01% to 22,256.49 with turnover above Rs.1.56bn and foreign investors net-selling Rs.225mn. Hemas, NDB and Hayleys Fibre were top turnover contributors (Hemas and Hayleys up, Panasian Power down).

Agrithmics has deployed a fully integrated digital estate management system at Goomera Estate, the first government-owned tea estate in Sri Lanka to be digitalized, and the State Plantation Corporation plans to roll the system out across all its estates by year-end. The platform automates wages, attendance and plucking data and provides GPS-enabled dashboards and offline-capable mobile apps.

The Sri Lanka Institute of Marketing (SLIM) has launched SLIM DIGIS 2.6, a national digital marketing awards platform themed 'Mission to Extraordinary', and is opening entries — including international participants — to recognise digital marketing excellence.

Colombo Stock Exchange trended up, with the ASPI rising 0.27% (61.12 pts) to 22,314.64 on turnover of Rs.609.9m, led by capital goods (Rs.241.2m). Lee Hedges announced revised payment terms for its Rs.3.15bn acquisition of Lanka Realty Developments (Rs.1.1bn paid, Rs.2.057bn due within six months plus interest).

Deloitte Sri Lanka held a client session 'From Compliance to Capital' on using climate disclosure (SLFRS S1/S2) to boost resilience and access to capital, covering decarbonisation, Scope 1–3 emissions, assurance-ready data and sustainable finance.

Deputy Minister Chathuranga Abeysinghe said Sri Lanka can reach $36bn in exports under the National Export Development Plan if urgent reforms, strategic FDI and lower energy costs are delivered. The government will prioritise digitalisation, trade facilitation, supply‑chain improvements and value addition, with focus on plantations while warning of acute skills shortages.

Fraudsters are sending WhatsApp messages impersonating the Department for Registration of Persons to obtain NIC details and OTPs/passwords, then use them to access victims' bank accounts and steal funds. Sri Lanka CERT warns the public and says the DRP does not verify identities via WhatsApp.

Dialog Axiata PLC continued as Official Sponsor of Sri Lanka’s national League of Legends team at the Asian Games 2026 qualifiers; Sri Lanka beat Kazakhstan in the group stage but did not advance.

Sri Lanka urged Belgian and Luxembourg investors to seize opportunities in infrastructure and green energy, pointing to planned PPP and investment protection reforms and competitively priced land. Officials highlighted Port City expansion, shipbuilding, marinas and agricultural processing as priority sectors for partnerships.

PayMedia (Pvt) Ltd marked its 12th anniversary, highlighting a decade of delivering fintech solutions to banks and financial institutions—digital wallets, smart banking platforms, micro‑finance apps, digitized onboarding and AI-powered services. The company says it has earned security certifications and will continue driving financial inclusion and fintech innovation in Sri Lanka.

Binance Research reports the tokenized real-world-asset market crossed US$10B in market cap in 2026 (a 10x rise since early 2024), with weekly volume averaging US$735M; ~80% of Binance tokenized stock traders are in emerging markets and 93% of trades are fractional (median US$18.81).

Colombo Stock Exchange closed down on Friday as investor uncertainty over a US–Iran deal weighed on markets; the ASPI fell 0.33% to 22,361.31 and the S&P SL20 fell 0.25% to 6,211.13. Market turnover was Rs 1.8 billion and crossings were recorded in CIC, Singer, NDB, Sampath Bank and Dialog Axiata.

Kaspersky detected at least 336 unique domains impersonating official World Cup resources and warns fans about fake streaming and betting sites that harvest registration data or demand cryptocurrency payments. It advises using official broadcasters, enabling 2FA, and using anti-phishing security to avoid data and financial loss.

Redington and IBM hosted the IBM Innovation Forum Sri Lanka 2026 on June 5 to promote secure, AI-driven enterprise transformation, featuring panelists from DFCC Bank and Sanasa Development Bank and introducing IBM Bob for enterprise software development.

Dialog Axiata PLC achieved independent validation of its enterprise risk management against ISO 31000:2018 by Quality Austria Central Asia, becoming the first Sri Lankan telecom to receive this validation.

Colombo market rose for a second session as the ASPI gained 0.22% to 22,436.14 on turnover above Rs.3.1bn, driven by elevated HNW activity with PKME, Dialog and NDB among top contributors; foreigners were net sellers of Rs.333.3m.

Aurum HealthTech's Dr. Paw platform provided real-time digital health monitoring and a centralized electronic health record for 'Aloka' during a peace walk from Anuradhapura to Colombo; a comprehensive digital health report was presented to DAPH, SLVA and University of Peradeniya officials.

Dialog Axiata PLC has received independent validation of its Enterprise Risk Management against ISO 31000:2018 by Quality Austria Central Asia Ltd. The company says it is the first Sri Lankan telecom to achieve this, strengthening governance across its telecom and digital services.

Concentric AI, together with local partner Orin Corporation, has joined as Strategic Partner for the 2nd Data Privacy and Protection Summit on 23 July 2026. The summit will focus on AI-driven data security and preparing organisations for imminent PDPA enforcement.