ECONOMYNEXT – Sri Lanka’s Printcare plans to raise 700 million rupees in a rights issue offering 19 new ordinary voting shares for every 70 ordinary voting shares.

23,333,810 ordinary voting shares will be offered at 30 rupees per share. 

The total consideration for which the shares are to be issued is at 700,014,300 rupees.

The current stated capital of the company is at 271,893,021 rupees.

The funds will be used for investment and working capital, the company said in a market filing.

The company’s shares were trading at 38.00 rupees, down 5 percent. (Colombo/September16/2026)

ECONOMYNEXT – Sri Lanka’s Colombo Stock Exchange indices were trading slightly lower on Wednesday morning, CSE data showed, with the benchmark All Share Price Index moving down 0.07 percent.

The ASPI was down 15.72 points at 21,246.41, while the more liquid S&P SL20 was flat, up 0.15 points (0.00 percent) at 5,976.82.

Positive contributors to the ASPI were Namunukula Plantations (up 12.37 percent at 74.50 rupees), Colombo Land and Development Company (up 4.21 percent at 49.50 rupees), Hatton National Bank (up 0.20 percent at 380.75 rupees), and Co-operative Insurance Company (up 3.03 percent at 3.40 rupees).

Digital Mobility Solutions Lanka (down 1.59 percent at 155.00 rupees), Sampath Bank (down 0.36 percent at 139.75 rupees), Melstacorp (down 0.41 percent at 184.00 rupees), and Hemas Holdings (down 0.65 percent at 30.80 rupees) were top negative contributors.

Market turnover was 106.1 million rupees. Diversified Financials led turnover with 26.4 million rupees.

Asia Asset Finance converted 41,398,511 convertible, irredeemable, five-year preference shares into 53,348,596 ordinary voting shares, which were listed with effect from September 16, 2026. Asia Asset Finance shares were trading down 0.86 percent at 46.10 rupees.

Meanwhile, Printcare announced that its board of directors recommended a rights issue of 23,333,810 ordinary voting shares at 30.00 rupees each in the proportion of 19 new shares for every 70 existing shares to raise 700.01 million rupees for investment and working capital. Printcare shares were trading down 5.00 percent at 38.00 rupees. (Colombo/September16/2026)

ECONOMYNEXT – Sri Lanka’s Hunas Holdings has entered into a partnership with CCH Inc, a Tokyo-based diversified business group, in relation to its real estate and hospitality sectors. 

The partnership, effective September 14, will be struck with Yoshimichi Watanabe, who is “a high-net-worth individual with extensive investment experience across ecommerce, hospitality and real estate, with exposure to both the Japanese and international markets, including Bali, Indonesia,” Hunas Holdings said in a market filing. 

Watanabe has made many investments in Sri Lanka over the years. 

The Sri Lankan company said that the partnership will support expansion into the real estate and hospitality sectors, as well as be instrumental in its long term growth. 

CCH Inc is a Tokyo-based diversified business group founded in 2008 that specializes in business process outsourcing (BPO), in-house services, investment, mergers and acquisitions, and business development.

Hunas Holdings, a listed company, has 12 subsidiaries that specialise across renewable energy, leisure, tea and real estate. (Colombo/September16/2026)

ECONOMYNEXT – Vietjet has expanded partnerships with Thales and CFM International across maintenance, repair and overhaul (MRO), aircraft component support, digital aviation, artificial intelligence (AI) and cybersecurity as it expands operations globally including Sri Lanka.

These capabilities will support Vietjet’s expanding fleet and international network, including its direct service between Colombo and Ho Chi Minh City, the airline said.

“Our partnership with Thales will not only enhance the reliability, safety and operational efficiency of Vietjet’s fleet, but also open up new areas of cooperation in digital technology, AI and cybersecurity,” Nguyen Thanh Son, CEO of Vietjet, said.

“Together with leading French partners, we look forward to connecting technological expertise with a dynamic aviation market, contributing to stronger trade, investment and ties between Vietnam and France.”

The agreements deepen cooperation between Vietjet and two major international aerospace technology partners.

During the Vietnamese President To Lam’s visit to France, Vietjet and Thales signed a key MRO contract.

As part of this Repair-By-The-Hour (RBTH) contract, Thales will provide component maintenance services for Vietjet’s Airbus fleet, including A320/A321, A321neo/A321XLR, A330 and A330neo aircraft, the same Airbus family that includes the aircraft flying Vietjet’s Colombo route.

Vietjet and Thales also signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) around digital aviation, avionics, cybersecurity and AI enhanced airline operations.

The cooperation will explore secure cloud solutions, predictive analytics and decision support technologies for airline operations.

Vietjet and CFM International have also signed a Letter of Intent (LOI) to assess the feasibility of Vietjet developing its own solution for LEAP engine maintenance, repair and overhaul (MRO) capabilities in Vietnam.

Under the terms of the LOI, CFM would propose a consulting agreement to provide Vietjet with advisory services related to the assessment of engine MRO requirements, capabilities, infrastructure, workforce, and industry considerations associated with a potential local maintenance solution in Vietnam.

The initiative comes as Vietjet expands its large next generation fleet.

CFM has powered Vietjet’s growth since the airline took delivery of its first CFM56 powered Airbus A320ceo aircraft in 2014.

The airline currently operates 50 CFM56 powered A320ceo and A321ceo aircraft.

The CFM International and Thales partnerships strengthen Vietjet’s capabilities across engine and component MRO, digital aviation, AI and cybersecurity, supporting its continued fleet and network expansion.

Sri Lanka remains a part of that growth, the airline said.

Since Vietjet launched direct flights between Colombo and Ho Chi Minh City on 18 August 2026, the route has become an important link between the two countries, one that stands to benefit from the same expanded Thales MRO support and CFM engineering partnership strengthening Vietjet’s fleet worldwide. (Colombo/Sep16/2026)

ECONOMYNEXT – Sri Lanka’s Gross Domestic Product (GDP) grew by 4.2 percent in the second quarter of 2026 compared to a 5 percent growth in the same period last year, and slowing from a 5.1 percent expansion in the previous quarter, data Department of Census and Statistics showed.

The quarter faced challenges mainly from fuel rationing and high energy costs after the government raised fuel prices in the wake of Middle East escalation.

“The second quarter of 2026 started with an economic outlook that somewhat gloomy given the escalating tensions in the Middle-East,” the state-owned Statistics Department said in a statement.

“That uncertainty in economic expectations mainly shaped the economic activities in the second quarter with seemingly shortage of crude oil supply. Moreover, the adverse effects were more visible through subdued tourism performance.”

“In addition, agriculture activities reported a decline and some major economic activities reported relatively low expansions compared to the second quarter of 2025.”

GDP at constant (2015) prices reached 3,029.6 billion rupees in Q2 2026, up from 2,908.6 billion rupees in Q2 2025.

However, the growth marks a sustained recovery from the 10.6 percent contraction suffered during the economic crisis peak in Q1 2023.

Rs. 3,029,816 million from Rs. 2,908,570 million which was reported in the second quarter of 2025. The GDP growth rate for the second quarter of year 2026 has been reported as 4.2 percent positive growth.

Growth was led by the industrial sector, which expanded 7.3 percent, contributing 52.7 percent to total economic output.

The overall Agricultural activities declined by 2.3 percent in the second quarter of 2026 and service sector gained 2.7 percent.

The Statistics Department said accommodation and food serving, financial service activities and insurance activities reported comparatively diminished growth rates.  (Colombo/September 15/2026)

ECONOMYNEXT – Sri Lanka’s 2027 capital expenses will be around 2,000 trillion rupees and the government is in the process of speeding the procurement and approvals to fast track public investment projects, Cabinet Spokesman and Minister Nalinda Jayatissa said.

Sri Lanka has historically failed to spend its total capital expenditure allocations due to delay in procurement and approval process from the line ministries.

The island nation has spent only 17.4 percent of the allocated total capital expenditure of Rs.1,380 billion rupees as of mid-June this year, Finance Ministry officials have said.

Sri Lanka’s chronic failure to utilize its full budgetary allocations for capital investment reflects deep-seated structural inefficiencies in public financial management and project execution, analysts and economists say.

Year after year, bureaucratic delays, protracted procurement disputes, politicized project selection, and a lack of technical expertise within line ministries leave a significant portion of capital expenditure unspent on the Treasury books.

“For the upcoming year, we project capital expenditure or development expenditure of 2,000 billion rupees (2 trillion rupees). This is a substantial budget,” Cabinet Spokesman Jayatissa told reporters at the post-Cabinet media briefing on Tuesday.

He admitted the delay in utilizing the capital expenditure has been mainly due to delays in awarding contracts and starting project implementation in October.

“To effectively utilize these funds, awarding contracts in September or starting projects in October is insufficient; work must commence in January. We have established the necessary mechanisms, operational environment, and approvals to support this timeline,” he said.

He said normally by September, procurement activities are finalized and contracts are awarded in most places.

“Normally under this methodology, when work is carried out, this is the timeframe when work commences. Therefore, we can truly assess progress toward the end of December.”

“Progress does not happen in monthly increments of 10%, 15%, or 20%. Rather, by November or December, that percentage increases significantly. We expect it to increase further during this period.”

He said the government has faced a key issue regarding a shortage of tar in certain contracts, which persists currently.

“To address this, we submitted a cabinet paper two weeks ago to import 30,000 metric tons of tar. Although there is some delay in road development projects, we have the capability to complete them,” he said.

“Taking all these factors into account, we issued a circular to all ministries informing them that they do not need to wait until the budget is passed in Parliament. They can prepare their project plans, draft estimates, and initiate procurement activities. Only the final awarding of the procurement should be held back. This allows us to award contracts and commence physical work by January.”

This capital underutilization carries severe long-term repercussions for the island’s economic trajectory.

By failing to deploy allocated funds into critical infrastructure such as transport networks, modernized power grids, and digital public systems, the state stifles productivity growth, worsens structural bottlenecks, and lowers the country’s overall gross domestic product (GDP) potential.

In a fragile post-default macroeconomic climate, this persistent shortfall also sends a negative signal to international development partners and private investors.

“This issue is not unique to our administration; it has been a persistent, long-standing systemic flaw,” Minister Jayatissa said.

“Recognizing this, four months ago we instructed ministries to initiate preliminary activities early. The Ministry of Finance will assume responsibility for facilitating the process so that you can advance procurement activities up to the award stage.” (Colombo/September 15/2026)