A stock of weapons suspected to have been hidden by the LTTE during the war was found in the Sambu Kalapuwa area of Vakarai during a search operation. According to the Police, a team of officers from the STF Vakarai camp carried out the search operation under an order obtained from the Valachchenai Magistrate’s Court. The operation was conducted by a group of STF officers, including the Regional Commanding Officer (Trincomalee). During the search, the following weapons were recovered: 38 RPG anti‑tank rounds 37 RPG chargers 05 SFG‑87 type live hand grenades According to court orders, the explosives are scheduled…
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The Government is following a mild approach with regard to US invasion on Venezuela, an opposition MP told Parliament yesterday.
India’s Chief of the Army Staff, General Upendra Dwivedi, arrived in Sri Lanka today on a two-day official visit, the Indian Ministry of Defence said.
Independent MP Ramanathan Archchuna today urged the Speaker to change the seat of MP Gajendra Kumar Ponnambalam after accusing him of using abusive language.
The Ministry of Transport and Highways says tenders have been invited for the construction of the Central Expressway up to the Rambukkana-Galagedara section. According to the ministry, details regarding the tenders could be obtained via https://rda.gov.lk/index.php?option=com_inquiries… In November last year, the Government announced that it had decided to commence the construction of the Rambukkana-Galagedara section of the Central Expressway Phase III using domestic funds. Presenting the 2026 Budget proposal to Parliament, President Anura Kumara Dissanayake said it has been proposed to commence construction work on the Rambukkana-Galagedara section using local funding, taking into account the country’s fiscal space. He said…
It is noted with deep consternation that several states in Latin America, the Middle East and elsewhere are ominously threatened with military strikes and other forceful measures in potential violation of their respective sovereignty and territorial integrity, Sri Lanka Muslim Congress (SLMC) leader Rauff Hakeem said.
The upcoming ICC Men’s T20 World Cup is set to reach audiences across Sri Lanka on an unprecedented scale, as Dialog Television today announced a landmark collaboration with free-to-air broadcaster TV Supreme. The agreement will see TV Supreme broadcast all ICC events through to 2028, with media rights owned by Dialog, Sri Lanka’s No. 1 Pay-TV service provider. This partnership marks the first time a Pay-TV company in Sri Lanka has entered such a collaboration with a free-to-air broadcaster. The alliance will significantly expand access and enhance the on-screen viewing experience, beginning with the ICC Men’s T20 World Cup 2026,…
ECONOMYNEXT – Sri Lanka’s stock market was closed with all deals cancelled after an error trade on shares of Wealth Trust Securities, which debuted on Wednesday. “Based on the request made by industry participants and to ensure a fair and orderly market the CSE in consultation with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) has decided to close the market for the day,” the Colombo Stock Exchange said in a statement. “As notified earlier CSE has cancelled all orders and transactions carried out today prior to market halt. Trading will resume tomorrow as usual.” The CSE initially halted trading after an…
ECONOMYNEXT – Sri Lanka’s Treasury bill yields rose across maturing at Wednesday’s auction, with the 6-month yield rising 17 basis points to 8.44 percent, data from the Public Debt Management Office shows. The 3-month weighted average yield rose 14 basis points to 7.88 percent. After offering 20 billion rupees, 10.76 billion rupees, was sold. The 6-month weighted average rose 17 basis points to 8.44 percent. After offering 50 billion rupees of bills, 80.45 billion was sold. The 12-month yield rose 2 basis points to 8.47 percent. 30 billion rupees of bills were offered and 8.77 sold. (Colombo/Jan7/2026)
ECONOMYNEXT – Sri Lanka’s Wealth Trust Securities says the error share trade on its debut on the Colombo Stock Exchange had nothing to do with the firm or its pre-IPO shareholders. “The Company further confirms that no shares have been sold by pre-IPO shareholders in the market,” the firm said in a statement. “There is no impact on the Company’s fundamentals, operations, or previously disclosed information.” “We urge the Capital Market Regulatory Authorities to investigate and act on this incident to ensure prevention of similar market disruptions in the future.” The CSE halted trading and cancelled all trades on Wednesday…
ECONOMYNEXT – Sri Lanka has signed an 8 million euro grant agreement with the European Union (EU) to develop environmentally responsible agricultural practices in the rubber sector. The initiative will support Sri Lanka’s transition “to more sustainable and environmentally responsible agricultural practices in selected value chains of rubber sector with special attention to youth and women,” the finance ministry said in a statement. The grant, under “the AgriGreen Initiative – Green Economic Growth through Sustainable Agriculture Practices” Project, will support a project developed by the Ministry of Plantation and Community Infrastructure as lead-Ministry, Rubber Development Department and Rubber Research Institute…
ECONOMYNEXT – Sri Lanka’s Colombo Stock Exchange said it was cancelling all trades on Wednesday after an error trade on shares of Wealth Trust Securities which debuted on the market Wednesday. Once a sale is executed, sellers can use the buying power to purchase other shares. “The price of certain transactions of Wealthtrust Securities Limited carried out in the morning today, appeared to be at irregular prices,” CSE said in a statement. “Since this may have had an effect on the buying power of Investors, the Colombo Stock Exchange (CSE) halted the market to ensure a fair and orderly market.…
Fitch Ratings-New York/London-06 January 2026: The immediate and longer-term outcomes of the US’s removal of Venezuelan leader Nicolas Maduro are highly uncertain, but they could have geopolitical implications in terms of greater US influence and power in the Western Hemisphere, Fitch Ratings says. Nevertheless, we do not expect Maduro’s ouster to lead to any immediate sovereign rating actions, in part because of Venezuela’s limited trade and financial linkages with the rest of the region. The situation in Venezuela appears fluid. After condemning the US action, interim president Delcy Rodríguez said the Venezuelan government is willing to work with the US…
ECONOMYNEXT – Sri Lanka’s Ceylon Hospitals (Durdans) said it will seek shareholder approval for a share sub-division which will see both voting and non-voting shares split into 4. The subdivision will see 31,762,723 voting shares increased to 127,050,892, and 10,133,765 non-voting stock increased to 40,535,060, according to a stock exchange filing. The subdivision of shares will not result in any change to the stated capital of the company, which will remain at 1.778.802.331.50 rupees, Ceylon Hospitals said. The issue is pending regulatory approval. The stock was trading up at (voting) 310.00 rupees and (non-voting) 251.00, before the Colombo Stock Exchange…
Photo courtesy of iPleaders As qualified as some women are for various high positions, many choose to shun the limelight as they want to get on with bettering themselves, taking care of their families and their inner circles rather than dealing with the male-dominated world that is so frustratingly and predictably misogynistic in so many ways. Sri Lanka, for instance, is made up of over 50 percent women yet in 2025 those in high office are less than five percent both in the professional and corporate world and/or particularly in the political sphere, which is definitely made up of the…
Photo courtesy of DW Sri Lanka did not enter 2026 through celebration. It crossed the threshold quietly, carrying grief. The final days of 2025 did not offer closure but catastrophe. Cyclone Ditwah, the most devastating climate disaster since the 2004 tsunami, swept across the island with a force that felt sudden yet deeply foretold. Floodwaters swallowed towns in the lowlands. In the Central Highlands, long abused in the name of development, the earth itself gave way. More than 1,500 major landslides were recorded within days. Entire villages vanished beneath mud and rock. Roads collapsed, rivers shifted course and families were…
ECONOMYNEXT – Sri Lanka’s Colombo Stock Exchange trading was halted shortly after opening following an error trade on Wealth Trust Securities, which debuted on the market on Wednesday, an official said. The CSE website showed a trade executed at 25,000 rupees and later trades went at 17 rupees and below. Wealth Trust Securities had an initial public offer at 7.00 rupees. Following the execution of the error trade, turnover showed at 162 billion rupees. Trading was halted to resolve the error trade, an official said. RELATED : Sri Lanka’s Wealth Trust Securities to raise Rs500mn from IPO (Colombo/Jan07/20250
ECONOMYNEXT — The US Ambassador to Sri Lanka Julie Chung will leave the island nation on January 16 after almost four years, as her tenure in Colombo ends. “I have loved every moment of my time in Sri Lanka,” Chung said in a statement. “From day one, my focus has been to advance America’s interests—strengthening our security partnerships, expanding trade and investment, and promoting education and democratic values that make both our nations stronger. “Together, we’ve built a relationship that delivers results for the American people and supports a free, open, and secure Indo-Pacific.” Chung’s tenure began in February 2022.…
The low-pressure area in the Bay of Bengal, to the southeast of Sri Lanka, is likely to intensify into a depression during the next 12 hours and is expected to move west-northwestwards, towards the east coast of the island. As such, the showery condition over Sri Lanka, particularly in the Northern, North-Central, Eastern, Uva and Central provinces, is expected to increase from tomorrow (Jan 08). Showers will occur at times in the Uva province and in the Batticaloa, Ampara, Polonnaruwa, Matale and Hambantota districts. Fairly Heavy falls above 50 mm are likely at some places in these areas. Several spells…
ECONOMYNEXT – Sri Lanka’s central government debt fell to 93.1 percent of gross domestic product by September 2025, from 96.1 percent at the beginning of the year, official data show, though currency debasement has worsened since then. Sri Lanka’s domestic debt, calculated in rupees, rose by 391 billion rupees to 18,701 billion rupees by September 2025, and foreign debt rose by 545 billion rupees to 10,974 billion rupees, based on central bank debt data. Treasury guaranteed debt from 1,432 billion rupees (about 4.79 percent of GDP) in December 2024 to 1,385 billion rupees (4.34 percent of GDP) by August 2025…