ECONOMYNEXT – Sri Lanka’s monthly foreign exchange revenue from tourism rose for a second straight month in September 2026 and gained 1.5 percent from a year ago to US$185.6 million, the central bank said, quoting tourism promotion authority data.

The rise comes despite a 0.3 percent fall in monthly tourist arrivals last month, data showed.

Tourism revenue has been falling since October 2025 with the government-owned tourism promotion body’s revision of the daily average spending per tourist and the duration of the tourist stay.

Total tourism revenue in the first nine months fell 9.2 percent to US$2,245.2 million, compared to US$2,472.9 million in the same period last year.

Arrivals in the first nine months showed a 1.8 percent decline.

The island nation recorded its lowest revenue in 32 months in June this year. Tourism revenue has been falling rapidly year-on-year since the U.S./Israel bombing of Iran began on February 28.

The state-owned Sri Lanka Tourism Development Authority (SLTDA) revised the methodology for compiling monthly tourism earnings estimates in May this year, retrospectively from January, citing the need to “enhance the accuracy and representativeness”.

Sri Lanka has revised down its ambitious arrival target to 2.7 million from 3 million and the revenue goal to US$4.2 billion from US$5 billion for this year.

The island nation witnessed US$3.22 billion in revenue in 2025, a 1.6 percent jump compared to US$3.17 billion in the previous year, according to the data.

Arrivals picked up 15.1 percent in 2025 compared to the previous year, with the number of foreign visitors to Sri Lanka rising to a record 2,362,521 from 2,053,465.

Tourism accounted for nearly 5 percent of Sri Lanka’s economy when the sector was at its peak in 2018. Since then, the sector has been hit by the violent Easter Sunday suicide attack in 2019, the Covid-19 pandemic in 2020, followed by an unprecedented economic crisis.

The Sri Lanka Tourism Development Authority estimates the tourism earnings figure from a survey.

Sri Lanka’s imports and the merchandise trade deficit have gradually picked up as tourism earnings came in and people in the sector spent their wages and other earnings. (Colombo/October 17/2026)

ECONOMYNEXT- Sri Lanka’s power grid was experiencing a total system failure due to a system instability that occurred this (17) morning, the state utility provider said, and asked rooftop solar owners to disconnect.

The National System Operator (NSO), a successor company of the Ceylon Electricity Board, said it is currently working on restoring the system.

“NSO requests the rooftop solar PV system owners to disconnect their systems until further instructions from NSO, in order to support the restoration efforts.”

Sri Lanka lost power around noon Saturday.

Power supply was yet to be restored two hours later.

Sri Lanka’s previous cascading power failure came from the inability of the grid to recover from shocks due to a large volume of rooftop solar power, the Ceylon Electricity Board Engineers’ Union said at the time.

Renewable power, helped by hydro power and new private renewable power including rooftop solar topped 64.4 percent in May 2025, sharply up from 48.3 percent the previous year, according to official data.

The island nation has seen strong growth in rooftop solar, and as a result, the utility is scrambling to accommodate more renewable power and maintain grid stability for which initial investments are required.

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Sri Lanka has a target of reaching 70 percent renewable power by 2030 with demand also expected to grow. (Colombo/Oct17/2026)

Colombo has four nights to let loose as Oktoberfest arrives at City of Dreams Sri Lanka, bringing the spirit of Bavaria to The Podium from October 21 to 24.

Powered by Commercial Bank, this year’s celebration promises hearty Bavarian fare, delicious beverages and live music that keeps the energy high, creating the perfect setting for friends, colleagues and partygoers to come together for a celebration that calls for another round.

Headlining the festivities is Slipping Chairs, who will be playing exclusively at City of Dreams Sri Lanka this Oktoberfest season and will take the stage on every one of the four nights.

Each evening, they will be joined by a different act, giving guests a fresh line-up every night. Cold Sweat opens the celebrations alongside Slipping Chairs on 21st October, followed by Black on 22nd October and Pop Culture on 23rd October, before Magic Box Mix Up joins Slipping Chairs for the grand finale on 24th October.

Beyond the live performances, the Oktoberfest experience brings together the flavours, drinks and lively atmosphere that make the celebration memorable.

Guests can savour a sumptuous Bavarian buffet featuring Oktoberfest favourites such as crispy Schweinshaxe pork knuckle, grilled Leberkäse and German sausages, including Weisswurst and Cheese Krainer.

Obatzda cheese dip served with freshly baked pretzels adds to the spread, while classic Apfelstrudel provides a fitting finish to the meal.

Generous brews and the buzz of The Podium complete the experience, creating an inviting setting to unwind after work or enjoy an evening of Oktoberfest celebrations.

Oktoberfest at City of Dreams brings a taste of Bavaria to Colombo’s destination of choice, combining authentic flavours, a generous buffet and live performances in a vibrant setting that captures the spirit of the celebration.

Running from 21 to 24 October at The Podium, tickets are priced at LKR 9,800 nett and include a sumptuous Bavarian buffet and live entertainment.

ECONOMYNEXT – Sri Lanka’s official remittances from expatriate workers rose 5.6 percent to US$ 734.4 million in September 2026, while they reached US$6,865.4 million in the first nine months of the year with an 18.1 percent growth, Central Bank data showed.

Analysts predict Sri Lanka will see record high remittances this year, surpassing the historically high annual worker remittance of US$8,076.2 million hit last year.

The remittances hit a seven-month low in June following the rupee’s depreciation after escalation in the Middle East, the largest foreign job market for Sri Lankans. They have recovered since then.

The rupee has been largely stable and showed a slight appreciating trend since July though it has shown some downside pressure since early last month, currency dealers say.

When there is uncertainty over the exchange rate, market analysts say expatriates switch to informal remittance methods like Hawala and Undiyal, which do not go through the formal banking system.

The island nation saw a record monthly remittance of US$879.1 million in December last year.

Higher worker remittances follow a higher number of the island nation’s labour force leaving the country to search for foreign jobs amid Sri Lanka’s recovery from an unprecedented 2022 economic crisis, official data showed.

Remittances have risen continuously after the central bank abandoned a parallel exchange rate regime in 2022, which compelled most expatriates to switch from informal Undiyal and Hawala money transfer methods.

The island nation has been in the process of sending more migrant workers focusing on professionals to bring in higher foreign exchange since the country declared bankruptcy in 2022.

Worker remittances through official channels fell sharply in 2021 after many expatriates switched to informal money transferring channels because they were offered higher rates than formal banking channels.

The move followed the Central Bank printing money to sterilize interventions and keep a policy rate down, which triggered parallel exchange rates settled outside the formal banking system.

From April 2022, the interest rates were raised by unprecedented levels, slowing credit and the need to print money to keep rates down. Later, the Central Bank started its dovish monetary policy until May this year. (Colombo/ October 17/2026)

ECONOMYNEXT – The release of Sri Lanka’s Household Income and Expenditure Survey (HIES) report for 2025 will be delayed by two months due to more time needed for the accurate compilation, the Parliament said in a statement.

The data for HIES is collected and compiled by the Department of Census and Statistics (DCS), operating under the Ministry of Finance, Planning and Economic Development.

The Parliament Committee on Public Finance (CoPF) early this week discussed the current situation regarding poverty, income distribution, and household welfare.

Attention focused on the collection of social and economic data, the scientific methodologies used to calculate the poverty line, and how that data is utilized for policymaking.

The relevant data are collected by the Ministry of Finance, Planning and Economic Development, the Department of Census and Statistics, the Central Bank of Sri Lanka, and the Welfare Benefits Board,

“Officials informed the committee that although the report was originally scheduled for release in October 2026, the release date has been deferred to December 2026 due to complexities in data cleaning, delays in computerization, cadre vacancies, and work related to the Economic Survey,” the Parliament said in a statement on Friday (16).

“It was revealed during the discussion that data was gathered from 25,000 households island-wide over a 12-month period for this survey, and data cleaning, verification, and analysis work are currently underway.”

“The necessity of publishing the results of such surveys in a timely manner to identify changes in economic and social conditions more accurately was emphasized.”

It said the necessity of updating the consumer basket used to calculate the poverty line to reflect contemporary social and economic changes was highlighted.

“Discussions particularly focused on whether calculations based on outdated data and commodity baskets accurately reflect the current cost of living and basic public needs.”

“Attention was also drawn to the requirement that data used in identifying beneficiaries for social welfare programs such as Aswesuma accurately reflect current household income and expenditure levels.”

Despite consecutive rounds of economic stabilization and fiscal consolidation, Sri Lanka continues to suffer significant social spending leakages and fiscal inefficiencies due to the absence of a unified, accurate, and real-time household data architecture.

Legacy welfare mechanisms have historically relied on outdated administrative registries, localized self-reporting, and fragmented institutional databases, creating severe inclusion and exclusion errors where non-poor households capture state relief while vulnerable agrarian populations remain omitted.

Attempts to rationalize relief mechanisms such as universal energy and fuel price cushions deployed during external market shocks further highlight these structural vulnerabilities, as the state lacks the integrated digital infrastructure required to deliver targeted, end-user cash transfers to specific groups like smallholder farmers, informal transport operators, and micro-entrepreneurs.

Consequently, policy implementations like the Aswesuma welfare scheme continue to face operational friction, leaving fiscal allocations exposed to administrative leakages and diminishing the overall efficacy of state safety nets during broader macroeconomic shocks. (Colombo/October 16/2026)

ECONOMYNEXT – Sri Lanka’s rupee closed at 331.25/35 to the US dollar in the spot market on Friday, weaker from 331.15/25 the previous day, while bond yields edged up, dealers said.

A bond maturing on 01.08.2030 closed at 11.40/50 percent, up from 11.35/40 percent.

A bond maturing on 15.10.2030 closed at 11.50/55 percent, up from 11.40/45 percent.

A bond maturing on 01.02.2031 closed at 11.55/65 percent, up from 11.45/50 percent.

A bond maturing on 15.12.2032 closed at 11.80/90 percent, up from 11.75/85 percent.

A bond maturing on 15.10.2034 closed at 12.25/35 percent, up from 12.20/30 percent. (Colombo/Oct16/2026)