ECONOMYNEXT – Sri Lanka is exploring partnering with shipping lines to improve the capacity of the island nation’s state-owned East Container Terminal (ECT), and at least five major international shipping lines have expressed interest in such a partnership, Port Minister  Anura Karunathilaka said.

The ECT is a major deep-water development project within the Port of Colombo.

The state-owned Sri Lanka Ports Authority (SLPA) primarily manages and operates it. The terminal is designed to expand the transshipment capacity of South Asia’s busiest maritime hub to handle Ultra-Large Container Vessels (ULCVs).

“We are exploring a partnership with shipping lines. Already 5-6 shipping lines have expressed interest,” the Minister told EconomyNext on Saturday on the sideline of a media briefing.

He said the government needs to call for expression of interest after cabinet approval and is exploring the option to finalise in the first half of next year.

Upon full expansion, the terminal is projected to feature a total quay wall length of 1,320 meters (approx. 4,330 feet) with a deep water draft of 18 to 20 meters.

Initial operations began with a 450-meter quay section and a stacking yard covering roughly 260,000 square meters.

Once all construction phases are completed, the ECT’s annual handling capacity will reach 2.4 million to 3 million TEUs (Twenty-Foot Equivalent Units), significantly boosting the Port of Colombo’s total capacity beyond 7 million TEUs.

The development of the ECT involves a total investment estimated between $500 million and $600 million.

To support high-density automated operations, the terminal is being equipped with modern equipment, including 12 Ship-to-Shore (STS) Super-Post-Panamax quay cranes capable of reaching across 24-container-wide mega-vessels, and 40 Automated Rail-Mounted Gantry (ARMG) cranes for efficient container yard management.

Located along the major Indian Ocean sea lane through which over $1 trillion in global trade passes annually, the ECT addresses the growing regional demand for deep-water berths capable of accommodating ships carrying over 18,000 to 22,000 TEUs.

Transshipment traffic accounts for roughly 75% to 80% of the Port of Colombo’s total cargo volume, with India-bound and originated cargo making up over 70% of those transshipment operations, rendering the ECT a critical logistics backbone for South Asian trade. (Colombo/September 28/2026)

ECONOMYNEXT – Sri Lanka is in the process of keeping the diesel prices steady in the next price revision, Energy Minister Anura Karunathilaka said, amid rising global oil prices due to Middle Eastern escalation.

The global oil prices have risen about US$100 per barrel and analysts say Sri Lanka will be forced to raise the fuel prices in the next revision as it has to implement a market reflective fuel prices, as per the deal with the International Monetary Fund (IMF).

“We are trying to keep at least the diesel prices steady. The current global prices are around US$110 per barrel. Otherwise we will have to provide a subsidy,” Minister Karunathilaka said on Saturday (26) on the sideline of a media briefing.

The next fuel price revision is expected by Wednesday this week.

Sri Lanka has reduced fuel prices twice after raising them more than 50 percent since the Middle Eastern escalation started on February 28, 2026.

The government provided a subsidy for fuel to prevent adverse impacts of the fuel price hike on the cost of living.

President Anura Kumara Dissanayake has announced Rs. 41 billion fuel subsidy in a political campaign meeting for the next three months.

His government spent around Rs. 57 billion for fuel subsidies in the three month period through end June this year with the authorities absorbed Rs. 100 per litre for diesel and Rs. 20 per litre for petrol.  (Colombo/September 28/2026) 

ECONOMYNEXT – Sri Lanka’s rupee closed weaker at 330.90/331.05 to the US dollar in the spot market on Monday, while bond yields closed higher, dealers said.

A bond maturing on 01.08.2030 closed at 11.25/30 percent, up from 11.13/20 percent.

A bond maturing on 15.10.2030 closed at 11.25/35 percent, up from 11.18/25 percent.

A bond maturing on 01.02.2031 closed at 11.30/40 percent, up from 11.20/30 percent.

A bond maturing on 15.12.2032 closed at 11.75/85 percent, up from 11.65/75 percent.

A bond maturing on 15.10.2034 closed at 11.95/12.05 percent, up from 11.90/12.00 percent. (Colombo/Sep28/2026)

ECONOMYNEXT – Sri Lanka’s Colombo Stock Exchange closed down on Monday after an early uptick, CSE data showed, with the benchmark All Share Price Index moving down 0.39 percent.

The ASPI was down 81.79 points at 20,955.56, while the more liquid S&P SL20 closed down 0.29 percent, or 17.28 points, at 5,923.44.

Market sentiment was weighed down by wider international developments, brokers said.

“Markets were down today; I think it is still very much the global disruptions that are really hurting sentiment,” Raynal Wickremeratne, Head of Research and Strategy at NDB Securities, said.

“Turnover was under 600 million rupees today, which is quite low, though there were crossings in counters such as John Keells and CDB,” Wickremeratne said.

Market turnover was 595.97 million rupees. Diversified Financials led turnover with 128.71 million rupees, followed closely by Capital Goods with 128.44 million rupees.

Positive contributors to the ASPI were Distilleries Company of Sri Lanka (up 0.76 percent at 52.90 rupees), Ceylon Tobacco Company (up 0.94 percent at 1,790.75 rupees), Laugfs Gas (up 1.86 percent at 43.80 rupees), and Hayleys (up 0.44 percent at 226.00 rupees).

Carson Cumberbatch (down 2.75 percent at 716.50 rupees), Sri Lanka Telecom (down 2.16 percent at 85.90 rupees), Dialog Axiata (down 0.65 percent at 46.10 rupees), and SMB Finance (down 9.09 percent at 1.00 rupee) were among the top negative contributors.

ACL Cables PLC announced an interim dividend of 60 cents per share for the financial year ended March 31, 2026, totaling 431.23 million rupees. The ex-dividend date is October 7, 2026, with payment scheduled for October 26, 2026. (Colombo/Sep28/2026)

ECONOMYNEXT – Sri Lanka’s central bank is looking for a cybersecurity professional, a Red Team Specialist, to look for advanced threat actors and simulate real-world cyberattacks.

The position is a contract role for three years, aimed at boosting the regulator’s proactive threat intelligence, network defense, and breach simulation capabilities.

The specialist will be tasked with executing intelligence-led red team engagements and proactive “hunt missions”.

Responsibilities include tracking ransomware groups, phishing kits, and fraud campaigns on the dark web and open sources.

Applicants should be below 30 years of age as of October 31.

Central banks worldwide face heightened risks from complex financial fraud campaigns. (Colombo/Sep28/2026)

ECONOMYNEXT – Sri Lanka’s potential in the Health Economy will be explored at the Sri Lanka Economic & Investment Summit 2026 (SLEIS 2026), organised by The Ceylon Chamber of Commerce on 12-13 October.

The session, “Reimagining Healthcare for a Modern Health Economy,” will explore how Sri Lanka can strengthen its healthcare ecosystem while developing new opportunities across healthcare services, pharmaceuticals, medical technology and related sectors.

It will also consider the role of private sector investment and innovation in improving healthcare delivery and outcomes.

The panel will feature a keynote address by Tushar Shroff – Chief Financial Officer, Zydus Lifesciences Limited.

He will be joined at the discussion by Vidyani Hettigoda – Director, Hettigoda Group of Companies, Raveen Wickramasinghe – President, Association of Private Hospitals and Nursing Homes and Chief Executive Officer, Ruhunu Hospital, Murtaza Esufally – Deputy Chairman / Non-Executive Director, Hemas Holdings PLC, and Ravi Rannan Eliya – Director, Institute for Health Policy.

The discussion will be moderated by Shyam Sathasivam – Group Chief Executive Officer, Sunshine Holdings PLC.

The session will examine how developments in healthcare can contribute to productivity, investment and economic growth, while addressing the opportunities and challenges involved in building a modern health economy. (Colombo/Sep28/2026)