News & market updates

Red Wings will operate 160 flights to Hambantota from Oct 28–May 6, bringing about 68,000 Russian tourists and generating an estimated $102m in tourism revenue. Tours will be handled in Sri Lanka by Exotic Holidays International and Aitken Spence Travels.

The National Logistics Awards 2024 were held on October 23 at the Shangri‑La Colombo to honour excellence across the logistics sector; over 40 prizes and seven 'Legends of Logistics' awards were presented. Hayleys Advantis and Aitken Spence Maritime joined as Gold sponsors, with CL Synergy as Main Sponsor.

The SLIBC led a business promotion mission to Indonesia (6–11 Oct 2024) with 14 Sri Lankan delegates, including Hayleys, Sunshine Holdings, Aitken Spence and LOLC, to pursue trade, investment and partnerships across food & beverage, pharmaceuticals, IT, travel and logistics.

ASPI closed down 4 points at 12,309 while S&P SL20 rose 2 points, with turnover of Rs.1.5 billion and foreign investors net selling Rs.109.4 million. ACL, UAL and HELA were among gainers while CFIN, LMF, LIOC, HAYL, RCL and SPEN were notable losers; Capital Goods led turnover.

Colombo Stock Exchange closed mixed: ASPI fell 0.03% to 12,309 while the S&P SL20 rose 0.05% to 3,624, with turnover of 1.4 billion and net foreign outflow of 109 million rupees. Top gainers included Sampath Bank, ACL Cables and Hemas; laggards included Hayleys, Central Finance, Royal Ceramics and Aitken Spence, and Lanka IOC reported a 50% drop in Sept quarter profit to 2,525 million rupees.

A Sri Lanka–Indonesia Business Council delegation visited Indonesia to strengthen trade and investment ties; the 14-member team included Sunshine Holdings, Hayleys, LOLC and Aitken Spence. The delegation attended the INASCA Business Forum and Trade Expo Indonesia, targeting food, health and technology opportunities.

Aitken Spence Hotel Holdings' Adaaran Select Hudhuranfushi, Adaaran Prestige Vadoo and Adaaran Select Meedhupparu won multiple awards at FHAM 2024 — Hudhuranfushi 11 awards (4 Gold), Vadoo 9 awards (4 Gold + special) and Meedhupparu 6 awards.

Aitken Spence Hotel Holdings' Heritance Aarah was named Most Outstanding Culinary Organization at FHAM 2024, winning 39 awards including 14 Golds and 10 special awards.

Colombo Stock Exchange rebounded as the ASPI rose 0.27% to 12,290 on turnover of about Rs.1.75 billion, driven by gains in hotel counters and select plantation and telecom stocks.

SLAITO elected Nalin Jayasundara of Aitken Spence Travels as president, pledging to drive strategic growth and innovation in Sri Lanka's inbound tourism sector. He urged immediate global marketing, infrastructure completion and collaboration to meet the government's target of 4m arrivals and $9bn revenue by 2030.

Nalin Jayasundera, Managing Director of Aitken Spence Travels, was elected president of SLAITO. SLAITO (200+ DMCs) pledged support for the government's target of 4 million tourists and USD 9bn revenue by 2030 and called for global marketing and completion of key infrastructure projects.

Aitken Spence PLC's Aitken Spence Travels won two awards at the South Asian Travel Awards 2024: 'Leading Travel Agent – Inbound' and 'Leading Cruising Travel Agent'. This is the second consecutive year the company has received these recognitions.

Aitken Spence Hotels (Aitken Spence Hotel Holdings PLC) won the highest number of regional awards at the South Asian Travel Awards 2024, securing multiple Gold and Silver wins across properties in the Maldives, Sri Lanka and India. The group's 'Your Summer Island Getaway' campaign also won Gold for Best Promotional Campaign.

Colombo bourse saw net foreign inflows of Rs. 339.1 mn while the ASPI fell 19 points on turnover of Rs. 2.1 bn. John Keells drew the most foreign buying and led turnover, banks (Sampath, DFCC) weighed on the index and AGPL rose 9.8% after a dividend.

The Sri Lanka Logistics & Freight Forwarders’ Association will hold the National Logistics Awards on 23 October at the Shangri‑La Colombo; CL Synergy is the main sponsor and Gold sponsors include Aitken Spence Maritime and Hayleys Advantis.

Aitken Spence PLC's Deputy GM Dr. Stephanie Rahaman participated in the UN Global Compact 'Forward Faster Now | Asia & Oceania' event in Kuala Lumpur (Aug 5-6, 2024), presenting on corporate sustainability. Sri Lankan delegates also showcased sustainability initiatives in tea and apparel and discussed AI for sustainability and SME support.

Colombo's ASPI rose about 6 points to 12,171 as turnover was Rs.1.4bn, led by Commercial Bank, Hayleys and John Keells. Hayleys (+4.5%) and John Keells (+2.5%) were major index movers while banking counters saw profit-taking (Sampath down) and foreigners net sold Rs.21.4m.

Colombo Stock Exchange closed higher: ASPI rose 0.92% to 12,164 and S&P SL20 gained 1.34% to 3,590, led by banking stocks which accounted for Rs 1.4bn of turnover; top contributors included C T Holdings, Sampath Bank, John Keells and Commercial Bank.

Colombo Stock Exchange closed lower on Oct 3: All Share Index fell 0.04% to 11,929 and S&P SL20 dropped 0.75% to 3,483, with turnover of LKR 1.3 billion and a net foreign outflow of LKR 17 million.

ASPI rose 7.4% for the week, closing yesterday at 11,774 (up 102) as investor confidence returned amid declining government security yields. Capital goods and banks led turnover with Access Engineering, John Keells, Aitken Spence and HNB among top contributors; MGT gained 4.9% while Sampath dipped slightly.

Colombo Stock Exchange closed higher: All Share Index up 0.87% to 11,773 and S&P SL20 up 0.76% to 3,409, with turnover of 2.9 billion and net foreign inflow of 69 million rupees. Banking stocks led gains (HNB, Commercial Bank, DFCC, NDB) while some crossings and active foreign flows hit multiple counters.

ASPI rose 130 points (1.19%) to 11,097 on a late rally after the presidential election, led by banking and blue‑chip gains (Commercial Bank, Hatton National Bank, Sampath Bank); turnover was Rs.994.4m and foreigners were net sellers by Rs.5.2m.

Colombo Stock Exchange closed higher: All Share Index rose 1.19% to 11,096 and S&P SL20 rose 1.88% to 3,160. Larger banks (HNB, COMB, SAMP, DFCC, NDB) led gains while some smaller banks (NTB) fell and HDFC was flat; turnover was 994 million and net foreign outflow 5.2 million.

Colombo Stock Exchange closed higher: All Share Index +0.54% to 10,884 and S&P SL20 +0.81% to 3,061, led by bank stocks which generated Rs5,514mn of turnover. Total turnover was Rs1.2bn with a net foreign outflow of Rs38.96mn; top turnover names included HNB, Commercial Bank, Sampath and Nations Trust.

ASPI rose 1.34% to 10,826 and the S&P SL20 gained nearly 2% as banking counters led gains and accounted for 46% of turnover; top contributors included Sampath Bank, Hatton National Bank, John Keells, Aitken Spence and Hayleys.

Colombo Stock Exchange closed higher: All Share Index up 1.10% to 10,683 and S&P SL20 up 1.86% to 2,979 on turnover of 1.2 billion, led by banks and blue-chips (notably HNB and JKH) and with a net foreign inflow of 80.39 million.

Aitken Spence Hotel Holdings PLC marks its 50th anniversary, now managing 18 properties with 2,629 rooms across Sri Lanka, the Maldives, Oman and India. The company emphasizes sustainability achievements (LEED, Green Globe), conservation efforts and talent development as it looks to the future.

The Sri Lanka–Malaysia Business Council held its 30th AGM on 22 August and elected Amana Bank deputy head Marshad Barry as president. The new executive committee includes firms such as Aitken Spence and Dialog Axiata and aims to strengthen bilateral trade and investment.

Aitken Spence PLC's logistics arm converted standard shipping containers into the US-funded 'Ship-in-a-Box' maritime training simulator delivered to the Sri Lanka Coast Guard to boost VBSS and maritime security training.

Colombo market opened lower with the ASPI closing at 11,495, down 9 points, on turnover of Rs.580.5m; capital goods led turnover (38%) while banking and blue-chip counters put pressure on the index.