ECONOMYNEXT – Sri Lanka’s Central Bank bought a net US$579 million in August, official data showed, amid a stabilizing local currency that touched a four-year low in the May this year.

It was the highest highest net absorption by the Central Bank from the domestic foreign exchange market since March 2024, the official data showed. 

The Central Bank did not sell any dollars in August, after selling more than US$211 million in May on a net basis for the first time in 22 months.

The Central Bank has net bought US$1,484 million in the first eight months of 2026 following a net purchase of US$2 billion last year.

The rupee was under high downward pressure in May as the imports bill for fuel rose unusually high following the Middle Eastern escalation amid continued demand for dollars to buy new vehicles.

The Central Bank has been buying dollars aggressively from the market to boost foreign currency reserves to meet the targets the country agreed with the IMF under the US$3 billion external fund facility and to repay the island nation’s multilateral and bilateral loans.

The Central Bank’s aggressive reserve building comes ahead of the repayment of foreign debts to sovereign bond holders in April 2028. (Colombo/September 07/2026)

ECONOMYNEXT – Sri Lanka’s rupee closed at 328.25/30 to the US dollar in the spot market on Monday, while bond yields closed higher, dealers said.

A bond maturing on 15.09.2027 closed at 9.55/75 percent.

A bond maturing on 15.02.2028 closed at 10.00/00 percent.

A bond maturing on 15.12.2029 closed at 10.50/55 percent.

A bond maturing on 01.08.2030 closed at 10.75/80 percent.

A bond maturing on 15.12.2032 closed at 11.15/25 percent.

A bond maturing on 01.11.2033 closed at 11.60/70 percent.

A bond maturing on 15.10.2034 closed at 11.75/83 percent.

A bond maturing on 15.08.2036 closed at 11.85/95 percent. (Colombo/Sep7/2026)

ECONOMYNEXT – Sri Lanka People’s Leasing & Finance PLC’s proposed ubordinated listed debenture issue of 10 billion rupees has received a final National Long-Term Rating of ‘BBB+(lka)’ from Fitch Ratings.

“The proposed debentures are rated two notches below PLC’s National Long-Term Rating. This reflects our baseline notching for loss severity for this debt class and our expectation of poor recoveries in the event of default,” the ratings agency said.

The full statement is reproduced below:

Fitch Assigns People’s Leasing’s Proposed Subordinated Debt Final ‘BBB+(lka)’

Fitch Ratings – Singapore/Colombo – 07 Sep 2026: Fitch Ratings has assigned Sri Lanka-based People’s Leasing & Finance PLC’s (PLC, A(lka)/Stable) proposed Sri Lankan rupee-denominated subordinated listed debenture issue of up to LKR10 billion a final National Long-Term Rating of ‘BBB+(lka)’.

Key Rating Drivers

The proposed debentures will mature in five years and will be listed on the Colombo Stock Exchange. The company plans to use the proceeds to further strengthen its Tier 2 capital base and to maintain capital adequacy compliance.

The proposed debentures are rated two notches below PLC’s National Long-Term Rating. This reflects our baseline notching for loss severity for this debt class and our expectation of poor recoveries in the event of default.

We applied our Bank Rating Criteria to rate the proposed debentures, as we believe the prudential capital framework of Sri Lankan finance companies is close to that for banks. There is no additional notching for non-performance risk, as the proposed debentures do not contain going-concern loss-absorption features.

The final rating is the same as the expected rating assigned on 8 May 2026 and follows the receipt of documents conforming to information already received.

PLC’s National Long-Term Rating was upgraded to ‘A(lka)’ from ‘A-(lka)’ on 24 January 2025 following the upgrade of its parent, People’s Bank (Sri Lanka) (PB), to ‘AA-(lka)’ from ‘A(lka)’. PLC’s rating reflects Fitch’s expectation of extraordinary support from PB, if needed, based on the parent’s majority shareholding, PLC’s synergistic role and shared branding, offset by the subsidiary’s significant size relative to PB. Please refer to our commentary, Fitch Upgrades 10 Sri Lankan NBFIs’ Ratings, Affirms 8 Following National Scale Recalibration, published 24 January 2025, for details on PLC’s key rating drivers and sensitivities.

RATING SENSITIVITIES

Factors that Could, Individually or Collectively, Lead to Negative Rating Action/Downgrade
A downgrade of PLC’s National Long-Term Rating would lead to a downgrade of the subordinated debt rating.

Factors that Could, Individually or Collectively, Lead to Positive Rating Action/Upgrade
An upgrade of PLC’s National Long-Term Rating would lead to an upgrade of the subordinated debt rating.

REFERENCES FOR SUBSTANTIALLY MATERIAL SOURCE CITED AS KEY DRIVER OF RATING

The principal sources of information used in the analysis are described in the Applicable Criteria.

Public Ratings with Credit Linkage to other ratings
PLC’s rating is linked to PB’s National Long-Term Rating.

ECONOMYNEXT – Sri Lanka’s Colombo Stock Exchange closed flat on Monday trading, CSE data showed, with the benchmark All Share Price Index moving up a marginal 0.01 percent.

The ASPI was up 3.22 points at 21,623.66, while the more liquid S&P SL20 was up 0.23 percent, or 14.21 points, at 6,073.13.

Positive contributors to the ASPI were ACL Cables (up 2.50 percent at 98.30 rupees), Sri Lanka Telecom (up 6.69 percent at 92.50 rupees), Hatton National Bank (up 0.39 percent at 381.50 rupees), and Dialog Axiata (up 0.62 percent at 48.80 rupees).

Haycarb (down 3.78 percent at 210.25 rupees), John Keells Holdings (down 0.51 percent at 19.50 rupees), and Ceylon Cold Stores (down 2.35 percent at 124.50 rupees) were top negative contributors.

Market turnover was 2.133 billion rupees. Banks led turnover with 473.3 million rupees, followed by Insurance with 412.3 million rupees. (Colombo/September07/2026)

ECONOMYNEXT – India’s Minister of Defence Rajnath Singh ‘will hold consultations with the leadership of Sri Lanka’ on his three-day visit to the island nation, the ministry said.

“During the visit, Raksha Mantri will hold consultations with the leadership of Sri Lanka on a range of issues and interact with the Indian diaspora in Colombo.”

Singh is due to visit Sri Lanka from September 8 to 10 with a high-level delegation comprising senior officials from the Ministry of Defence and the Ministry of External Affairs.

“Raksha Mantri’s visit to Sri Lanka will further strengthen the traditionally strong and friendly bilateral relations in mutually beneficial areas including a strong maritime & defence partnership.”

Singh‘s visit is the first by an Indian Defence Minister in nearly 4 decades, after 1988, when K C Pant visited under Prime Minister Rajiv Gandhi’s administration.

Defence cooperation, possible collaboration in air-defence systems, and a review of ongoing security engagements are on the agenda, Indian media said. (Colombo/Sep7/2026)

ECONOMYNEXT – Sri Lanka has signed agreements with the French media development agency, Canal France International (CFI), backed by the European Union-funded Green Recovery Facility programme, to strengthen the reporting of environmental, climate, and economic stories across the country.

“This initiative provides an opportunity for journalists to broaden this coverage by exploring a wider range of environmental issues, including climate finance, green investment, sustainable development, biodiversity, and the policy and economic dimensions of the green transition,” the EU Delegation to Sri Lanka said.

The programme will support journalists in strengthening their technical and investigative skills to explore these issues in greater depth and produce sustained, evidence-based reporting.

Participants will be equipped with tools to analyse complex climate finance issues, examine public policies, and follow the flow and impact of green investments.

“By empowering reporters to translate highly technical financial and governance concepts into accessible public-interest narratives, this project ensures that everyday citizens understand how green policies impact their livelihoods, energy prices, and communities.

“It aims to mainstream the lens of ‘just transition’ and gender equity by encouraging the voices and perspectives of women and vulnerable populations to be heard, considered, and taken into account in the national environmental discourse.”

Implemented by Expertise France (EF), with Canal France International (CFI), the Sri Lanka Press Institute (SLPI), and the Ministry of Mass Media, it moves beyond traditional classroom-based learning.

Key highlights of the initiative include:

– Trilingual Foundation Training: Intensive capacity building for 60 journalists across Sinhala, Tamil, and English media to ensure nationwide reach and inclusivity.
– Mentored “Story Labs”: The rollout of six intensive Story Labs where journalists will receive direct editorial mentoring to investigate, produce, and publish high-quality, data-driven green transition stories
– Youth Outreach: Engaging journalism students and young media practitioners through university and youth activities to develop stories on green transition and public policy issues.
– Learning and Sharing Networking Event: Bringing together journalists, experts, policymakers, and key stakeholders to share learning, showcase stories produced through the programme, reflect on knowledge gained, and develop future story ideas on green transition issues.

“This initiative aims to strengthen the role of Sri Lankan media as a vital catalyst for informed public dialogue, enabling journalists to engage the public as the nation advances its sustainable economic recovery.”

Environmental journalism in Sri Lanka has traditionally given attention to natural disasters and their impacts. (Colombo/Sep7/2026)