May 26 (DM) Australian Federal Police (AFP) officers based in the Australian High Commission are currently assisting the SL Police in their investigations into the cyber theft of US $ 2.5 million meant for payment to the Australian Govt as part of debt servicing, an official said. Sri Lanka lost US $ 2.5 million to cyber criminals who breached the computer system of the Finance Ministry. Asked about the current status of AFP assistance in this regard, Australian High Commissioner more..

May 26 (DM) Sri Lanka has sufficient fuel stocks to meet demand until the end of July, Managing Director of the CPC, Mayura Nettikumarage, said. He said two additional crude oil shipments are scheduled to arrive in the country on May 28 and 31, ensuring uninterrupted fuel supplies in the coming months. Addressing reports of a possible fuel price increase and shortage, Nettikumarage said no decision has been taken to raise fuel prices and dismissed claims of a fuel shortage as false. more..

May 26 (EN) The SL–German Business Forum 2026 to be held in Colombo will bring together German public and private sector representatives and SL stakeholders to explore collaboration, with a focus on the maritime and logistics sectors, AHK Sri Lanka said. “This year’s forum will welcome key decision-makers from both the German public and private sectors, who will travel to Sri Lanka to explore new opportunities for collaboration, investment, and knowledge exchange.” more..

May 26 (Island) Sri Lanka has sought Somali help to ascertain the whereabouts of a SL sailor, abducted on 21 April this year. He was among a 17-member crew of the oil tanker Honour 25, hijacked near the Somali coast. The crew consisted of 10 Pakistanis, four Indonesians, one Indian, one Sri Lankan and one from Myanmar. The Ambassador-designate of SL, Nirmala Paranavitana, recently met the Ambassador of Somalia in Addis Ababa, Abdullahi Mohamed Warfa, to discuss more..

May 26 (ST) SL’s vehicle import sector has raised concerns over the Govt’s recently imposed 50% surcharge on the Customs Import Duty (CID), warning that while the move is aimed at curbing imports and stabilising the rupee, loopholes in the system may undermine the intended outcome. President of the Vehicle Importers Association of SL Madhushan Mannapperuma said the surcharge was introduced primarily as a management more..

May 26 (NW) Sri Lanka has approved a new international cooperation project aimed at strengthening the country’s sugarcane sector through technical collaboration with Brazil, one of the world’s leading sugar producers. The project will be implemented jointly by the Ministry of Industry and Entrepreneurship Development, Sugarcane Research Institute and the National Science Foundation together with the Brazilian Cooperation Agency and the Federal Uni of São Carlos. more..

May 26 (EN) Sri Lanka’s Cabinet has approved appointing a committee to submit recommendations on reforming the hiring of manpower employees in state-owned enterprises, minister Nalinda Jayatissa said. “There has been a gradual increase in the number of state-owned enterprises in Sri Lanka employing workers on a temporary basis through external manpower agencies, rather than directly recruiting employees for their core operations,” Jayatissa told reporters. more..

May 26 (EN) Gaps in Sri Lanka’s sugar-sweetened beverage (SSB) taxation and traffic light labelling (TLL) policy instruments is limiting their full potential, an Institute of Policy Studies (IPS) study has found. “The study provides strong evidence that demand for SSBs in Sri Lanka is price-responsive, with consumers continuing to purchase unhealthy beverages due to their lower cost, despite having adequate knowledge of TLL signals” more..

May 26 (AD) A suspected major drug trafficker identified as Shiran Basik has been arrested in Dubai. Police said the arrest was carried out by Dubai security forces. Reports indicate that Basik has alleged links to an Iranian drug trafficking network and is also wanted by the United States. Authorities further said he had been living in Dubai while posing as a wealthy businessman. He is believed to be one of five major traffickers involved in supplying narcotics to Sri Lanka. more..

May 26 (FT) Pelwatte Dairy Industries Limited has announced a significant new investment through its fully owned subsidiary, Pelwatte Foods Ltd., to establish a Greenfield Liquid Milk Manufacturing Facility (Phase 01) at its Kurunegala plant. The investment, valued at around Rs. 1.86 billion, was formalised through an agreement signed with the Board of Investment of SL (BOI) on 21 May. The signing ceremony was attended by Pelwatte Dairy Chairman Ariyaseela Wickremanayake, more..

May 26 (FT) The rupee is at 331 to the dollar. After the panic of hitting 342 at the peak of the Middle East oil shock, markets are reading this as a recovery. CBSL held OPR steady. Inflation is printing at 5.4% — right on target. Reserves are at $ 7.3 billion. The IMF program is on track. On the surface, it looks like the story has a good second chapter. I want to break that narrative down — not with opinion, but with the CBSL’s own data, including the weekly liquidity figures more..

May 26 (FT) After years of economic turmoil, SL’s construction industry was finally showing signs of stability. The CIOB Construction Cost Report 2024/2025 indicated that construction costs had largely stabilised, giving contractors, developers, financiers, and homeowners renewed confidence. That confidence is now being tested. No one disputes that a stronger US dollar increases construction costs. SL remains dependent on imported materials and inputs, making more..

May 26 (TM) In the wake of recent remarks by JVP General Secretary, Tilvin Silva, that PC Elections cannot be held this year, Election Commission (EC) stated that statements made by various individuals, including politicians, do not matter to the Commission and the Elections would be held once the relevant legal issues are cleared. When contacted, EC Chairperson R M A L Rathnayake said they do not take such more..

May 26 (FT) The rupee strengthened against the US dollar for the second consecutive session yesterday. The buy/sell LKR/USD interbank spot contracts closed at Rs. 325.50/Rs. 327.00 as against Friday’s closing of Rs. 329.00/Rs. 335.00. The spot market buy/sell rate eased on Friday from Thursday’s Rs. 331/Rs. 348 level, which marked the currency’s weakest level against the dollar last week, after the Central Bank of SL (CBSL) used moral suasion to calm a panicking market. more..

May 26 (DM) In a bid for economic risk mitigation over the falling dollar rate and surging import bills, the govt mulls the reintroduction of work from home for the public and private sector employees as done during the pandemic, an official said. The official who wished to remain anonymous said that the plan would be announced either today or tomorrow. He said the govt urgently needed to save on fuel usage, particularly diesel at the time. In recent days, the rupee value has crumbled. more..

May 26 (FT) SL’s export sector posted its highest-ever April performance, with total earnings surpassing $ 1.38 billion and reflecting a 6% year-on-year (YoY) growth driven by strong merchandise exports, despite a decline in services income. The merchandise exports shipped in April were up 9.87% YoY to over $ 1.06 billion, though estimated service earnings in the month decreased by 6.13% YoY to $ 317.16 million. more..

May 26 (AD) Governor of the Northern Province, Nagalingam Vethanayahan has dismissed social media reports claiming that dansals and Vesak decorations have been banned in the Northern Province during this year’s Vesak season. Governor’s Office said the claims circulating online are entirely false and without any basis. Statement emphasized that no such decision had been taken by the Governor’s Secretariat and that no discussions had been held regarding more..

May 26 (FT) Ceylon United Business Alliance (CUBA), a collective of small and medium businesses (SMEs), has written to Prez Anura Kumara Dissanayake calling for a temporary ban on non-essential imports to protect dollar reserves and local industries from escalating pressures from global supply shocks caused by the Middle East crisis. CUBA said: “SL is again facing a severe USD shortage. Before it is too late, we respectfully request the Govt to immediately impose more..

May 26 (FT) With probably the most anticipated Monetary Policy Statement in recent times to be announced by the Central Bank (CBSL) today, it yesterday said banks continued to expand lending appetite and observed rising loan demand across most sectors during the first quarter of 2026, despite growing external risks from Middle East tensions and Cyclone Ditwah. According to the CBSL Credit Supply Survey: Trends in 1Q and Outlook for 2Q 2026, the banking sector’s willingness to more..

May 26 (AD) The Central Bank of SL (CBSL) has indicated that vehicle prices could see a temporary increase due to higher surcharges imposed on vehicle imports and fluctuations in exchange rates. Speaking on the issue, representatives of the Vehicle Importers’ Association of SL (VIASL) urged authorities to provide relief at least for vehicles that have already been imported or for which Letters of Credit (LCs) have already been opened. The Vice President of the VIASL, more..

May 26 (ST) Since the end of the military defeat of the LTTE by the country’s armed forces in May 2009, each year the sacrifices made by the thousands of war heroes are commemorated with the Head of State, who is also the Commander-in-Chief of the armed forces, in attendance. On Monday, Prez Anura Kumara Dissanayke led the country in commemorating the day that saw the end of nearly a three-decade separatist war that more..

May 26 (DN) NZ women’s ‘A’ signed off with a 5-wicket win in the final T-20 game at Dambulla Stadium yesterday but SL women’s ‘A’ led by Sathya Sandepani sealed the three match series 2-1 at Dambulla. NZ women’s ‘A’ skipper Jess Watkin bowled a superb spell claiming 4 for 4 in her 2.5 over stint as SL which elected to bat first were reduced to 78 all out in 16.5 overs. The visitors reached the target with five wickets in hand with 7 balls to spare to end the tour with a solitary victory. more..

May 26 (TM) Newly-appointed cricket selection committee chair ex-SL medium-pacer Kapila Wijegunawardene, says that his panel has had no input into the selection of the national white and red-ball squads due to take off for a series in the West Indies, shortly. “The Men’s squads for the tour of the Caribbean had been picked by the previous committee," Wijegunawardene, 61, told The Daily Morning Sports, when inquired whether his panel had selected the respective squads. more..

May 26 (AD) Parliamentary Select Committee on Reviewing Election Laws has met for the first time in Parliament under the chairmanship of the Minister of Public Admin, PCs and LG, Prof. A.H.M.H. Abayarathna. The primary objective of the committee is to review laws relating to the electoral system, including the Registration of Electors Act, Local Authorities Elections Ordinance, Parliamentary Elections Act, Presidential Elections Act, as well as amendments made to those laws over the more..

May 26 (AD) A discussion between PM and Minister of Higher Education and Vocational Education, Dr. Harini Amarasuriya and representatives of the Education Graduate Association is scheduled to take place tomorrow (26) regarding the ongoing issue over teacher recruitment. The discussion will be held over the failure to recruit graduates from the 2018/19 and 2019/20 academic years of state universities into the teaching service. The association stated that under the SL Teacher Service Minute, more..

May 26 (FT) Former CB Governor Dr. Indrajit Coomaraswamy has said the recent depreciation pressure on the rupee was driven primarily by external shocks stemming from the Middle East conflict, while arguing that market participants had overreacted despite major improvements in SL’s macroeconomic policy framework. He said the current situation was qualitatively different from the 2022 economic crisis, noting that domestic more..

May 26 (DM) Referring to what has been taking place behind the scene during the past few weeks, opposition MP Chamara Sampath Dassanayake said that he has been told that Prez Anura Kumara Dissanayake had sought the assistance of former Prez Ranil Wickremesinghe and a few others to stabilise the economy. “We have heard that Prez Anura Kumara Dissanayake had sought the assistance of Former Prez Ranil Wickremesinghe & few others including SJB MP Harsha de Silva more..

May 26 (ST) Sri Lankan authorities are considering expanding investments by the Employees Provident Fund (EPF) in the stock market and other approved investment avenues, a move that is viewed with concern by trade unions, who had voiced protests earlier when the EPF invested in what were called dud companies and lost badly in the process. At the May 15 meeting of the tripartite National Labour Advisory Council (NLAC) chaired by Labour Minister Anil Jayantha Fernando, more..

May 26 (ST) CB’s Financial Investigation Unit (FIU) has, for the first time, flagged in its National Risk Assessment (NRA) report a developing threat known as pig butchering involving foreign scammers in SL targeting largely overseas nationals via scam farms. A pig butchering scam is a long-term confidence and investment fraud where criminals build fake romantic or friendly relationships to manipulate victims more..

May 26 (FT) Dialog Axiata yesterday overtook John Keells Holdings (JKH) to become the most valuable listed company in terms of market capitalisation. Dialog’s market cap reached Rs. 367.1 billion, amounting to 4.51% of total market cap, which was Rs. 8.11 trillion yesterday, up 2.04% from Friday. JKH came second with a Rs. 359.4 billion market cap (4.42% of total market cap), followed by Ceylon Tobacco Company with Rs. 341.9 billion (4.2%), Commercial Bank with Rs. 320.9 bil (3.95%) more..

May 26 (FT) Home Lands yesterday revealed the name of its latest twin tower high-rise development project in the Central Park district of Port City Colombo, Central Park Boulevard Port City. The company said it was offering unmatched value for investors and home buyers with the announcement of its attractive pre-launch prices, based on a special per-square-foot rate ranging from $ 300 to $ 400 per square foot. Pre-launch prices start from Rs. 60 million for one-bedroom (1BR), more..