The Central Bank of Sri Lanka maintains the policy rate at the current level
The Monetary Policy Board, at its meeting held yesterday, decided to maintain the Overnight Policy Rate (OPR) at the current level of 8.75%. The Board arrived at this decision after carefully considering the evolving conditions and outlook on the domestic and global fronts. The Board paid particular attention to the effects of the proactive monetary policy tightening in May 2026 …
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SRI LANKA CUSTOMS ENTERS A PAPERLESS ERA
Sri Lanka Customs will officially launch its first paperless customs declaration system on 1 October 2026 at the Sri Lanka Customs Auditorium, Colombo, marking an important step towards the digital transformation of customs procedures and improving services to the trading community The new system will enable customs declarations and supporting documents to be submitted and processed electronically, reducing reliance on …
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Promotion of Export Agriculture (Amendment) Bill Receives Approval of Sectoral Oversight Committee
The Promotion of Export Agriculture (Amendment) Bill was considered and approved at a recent meeting of the Sectoral Oversight Committee on Environment, Agriculture and Resource Sustainability. The matter was discussed when the Committee, chaired by Hon. Member of Parliament Hector Appuhamy, met on the occasion under the chairmanship of Hon. Member of Parliament, Attorney-at-Law Bhagya Sri Herath. As part of …
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Committee on Ways and Means Emphasizes the Need for Tax Administration Reforms and Digitalization
The Committee on Ways and Means emphasized the importance of utilizing digital technology, broadening the tax base, and strengthening institutional capacity to enhance the efficiency of Sri Lanka’s tax system, while reviewing the country’s fiscal performance, progress in tax revenue collection, and ongoing tax administration reforms. These matters were discussed at a recent meeting of the Committee on Ways and …
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CoPF Approves Rs. 71.7 Billion Relief Package Allocated Through Supplementary Estimate No. 03 of 2026 to Mitigate the Impact of the Middle East Conflict
The Committee on Public Finance (CoPF) has approved the Rs. 71.7 billion relief package allocated through Supplementary Estimate No. 03 of 2026 to provide relief to those affected by the economic repercussions arising from the conflict in the Middle East. The Committee also reviewed the allocations made under the relief package introduced by the Government to ease the burden on …
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Sri Lanka ‘CCC+/C’ Ratings Affirmed; Outlook Stable
Overview Rating Action On July 27, 2026, S&P Global Ratings affirmed its long- and short-term foreign and local currency sovereign credit ratings on Sri Lanka at ‘CCC+/C’. The outlook on the long-term foreign and local currency ratings is stable. We have revised the transfer and convertibility assessment to ‘B-‘ from ‘CCC+’. Outlook The stable outlook reflects our expectations that the …
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Decent Work for Domestic Workers Cannot Wait
Fifteen years ago on June 16, a sunny day in Switzerland, millions of domestic workers worldwide gained the recognition they had long deserved. The adoption of the Domestic Workers Convention 2011 (No. 189) during the International Labour Conference (ILO) in Geneva was a landmark moment, one that recognised domestic work as work like any other. Domestic workers play a critical …
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Sri Lanka, EM banks face outlook strain on Iran war, oil risk: Fitch
More emerging market outlooks are deteriorating as the US–Iran war disrupts oil supplies, hitting APAC banks in the Philippines and Sri Lanka, Fitch Ratings has said. “A higher share of sector outlooks are ‘deteriorating’ across global emerging markets (EMs) due to effects from the US–Iran war,” Fitch Ratings said. “The wider APAC region’s high dependence on oil and gas imports …
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Bank of Japan raises interest rates to 31-year high
The Bank of Japan raised interest rates to a 31-year high on Tuesday, marking another landmark step in normalising monetary policy as it focused on taming price pressures from the energy shock caused by the Iran war. The hike was the first since December and aligns the BOJ with other central banks shifting towards tighter policy to combat inflation, including …
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Sri Lanka’s GDP rises 5.1 percent in Q1 2026 – Census and Statistics Department
The Department of Census and Statistics (DCS) Sri Lanka, has released the estimated Gross Domestic Product (GDP) at current price and at constant (2015) price in Production approach and the other macroeconomic indicators for the first quarter (January 1st to March 31st) of 2026. The GDP for the first quarter of 2026 at constant price (2015) has increased up to …
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