News & market updates

Unity Plaza unveiled Sri Lanka's largest outdoor triple-faced LED digital screen on 3 December, completing its multi-year redevelopment and positioning the building as a leading IT hub. The installation, delivered with supplier Charming and Co. and On'ally's internal team, aims to reshape the digital out-of-home market.

SLT‑MOBITEL urges the public not to remove or cut fallen fibre and copper cables after recent extreme weather, saying removals have caused service disruptions across multiple cities and requesting cooperation to protect infrastructure and aid restoration efforts.

DC Group won Gold — Digital Innovation Agency of the Year (South Asia) and Gold — Digital Innovation Agency of the Year (Rest of South Asia) at the Campaign Agency of the Year Awards 2025. It is the first Sri Lankan agency to win these awards, highlighting the country's digital creative capability.

laptop.lk launched its Digital Wings initiative, donating laptops, desktops and printers worth over Rs. 1 million to Parakum Maha Vidyalaya in Vavuniya to improve digital access and literacy in rural schools.

Trade and Investment Queensland and Study Queensland held a two-day engagement in Sri Lanka with five Queensland universities (Griffith, James Cook, Bond, Central Queensland, Southern Cross) to promote scholarships, study pathways and student support. Officials highlighted opportunities in health, technology, agriculture, hospitality and construction and projected approximately 100,000 jobs from proposed projects ahead of the 2032 Olympics.

PRASL hosted a specialised Masterclass on Cybersecurity & AI Risk for PR and communications professionals, led by Asela Waidyalankara, to strengthen crisis communications preparedness against AI-driven misinformation and cyber incidents.

HUTCH Sri Lanka donated Rs. 60 million to the Government’s ‘Rebuilding Sri Lanka’ Fund for Cyclone Ditwah relief. The company also provided free calls, data and SMS, deployed mobile charging units and aviation engineers to restore damaged communication towers.

Sri Lanka's Ceylon Electricity Board restored power to 85% of the 3.9 million customers (55% of its 7 million customers) who lost service during Cyclone Ditwah. 16,771 transformers went inactive and 14,549 have been repaired; Kandy, Gampola and Nuwara Eliya were hardest hit and outages also affected telecom systems.

Fitch raised its world growth forecasts in the December Global Economic Outlook, projecting global GDP of 2.5% in 2025 and 2.4% in 2026. The report says surging IT and AI-related capex—IT accounted for almost 90% of US GDP growth in H1 2025—is cushioning the US from higher tariffs while policy rates are expected to be near neutral by mid‑2026.

Cyclone Ditwah left 829 dead or missing in Sri Lanka (479 confirmed dead, 350 missing) and displaced about 188,974 people. The storm damaged 44,556 houses (1,289 destroyed), inundated crops and tore up roads, rail tracks and the fibre-optic backbone, disrupting infrastructure and services.

SLT-Mobitel launched a free '247 Helpline' providing round-the-clock medical advice to flood-affected communities, connecting callers to a dedicated panel of medical professionals; the service is free and accessible to all mobile users across networks.

Binance Charity pledged Rs. 61.6 million to the Sri Lanka Red Cross to support immediate relief and early recovery for communities affected by Cyclone Ditwah. Funds will be used for food, clean water, hygiene and medical supplies, temporary shelter materials and cash grants for displaced families.

Deputy Minister Eranga Weeraratne said telephone and internet networks damaged by floods and landslides are expected to be fully restored by the day after tomorrow, with over 80% of disruptions resolved, ~2,800 of 4,000 transmission towers restored and 949 still inactive.

Treasury Secretary Harshana Suriyapperuma said the government is coordinating with banks and insurers and has activated nearly Rs.30 billion in emergency budget lines, authorising Rs.7.5 billion for housing to support households, SMEs and businesses hit by Cyclone Ditwah. Authorities have begun a World Bank-backed rapid damage assessment and approved a Rebuilding Sri Lanka Fund to guide reconstruction.

World Bank Country Manager Gevorg Sargsyan said Sri Lanka can achieve the government's 7% GDP growth target but only with decisive second-generation reforms to dismantle trade barriers, boost productivity and mobilise private capital. He called for tariff cuts, customs modernisation, logistics fixes, commercial SOE reforms and deeper financial intermediation to convert investor interest in energy, logistics and food into commitments.

The EDB, with IFC and the EU, concluded the second ExpoScaleUp pitching event under SLEEI 2025 to boost SME export readiness through training in market research, branding and logistics; selected SMEs will advance to ExpoConnect for market access and international buyer matchmaking.

The Management Club (TMC) announced the Northern Investment Summit for January 2026 to attract local and foreign investment to Sri Lanka’s Northern Province. The summit will spotlight agriculture, fisheries, IT, tourism, retail and energy and has endorsement/support from BOI, EDB, NEDA and other agencies.

PickMe activated its islandwide digital and logistical network to support flood relief, launching an in-app "AID" feature for free doorstep pickups of relief packs, digital donation channels and NGO partnerships as floods that killed hundreds and displaced thousands continue.

Dialog Axiata (DIAL.N0000) and Sri Lanka Telecom/SLT‑Mobitel (SLTL.N0000) are carrying out 24/7 recovery work after Cyclone Ditwah damaged backbone fibre and caused widespread outages; operators extended free mobile connectivity until 2 Dec and are prioritising backbone repairs with partners including Huawei.

SLT-MOBITEL has launched a free '247 Helpline' with the University of Colombo to provide round-the-clock medical advice for communities affected by Cyclone Ditwah; callers on any mobile network can dial 247 for timely guidance on flood-related health issues.

Ceylon Chamber of Commerce chair Krishan Balendra opened the Sri Lanka Economic & Investment Summit 2025, said growth is approaching 5% of GDP and announced all summit social funds will be redirected to Cyclone Ditwah relief. He urged private-sector support for recovery and highlighted strong foreign investor participation.

TikTok launched a search guide in Sri Lanka that links users to the Disaster Management Centre and verified resources to combat misinformation during floods after cyclone Ditwah. The guide also surfaces Safety Center and Tragic Event Support links, including mental-health and reporting guidance.

Dialog Axiata (DIAL.N0000) and Sri Lanka Telecom (SLTL.N0000) are conducting round-the-clock repairs to backbone fibre and power installations after Cyclone Ditwah caused widespread network outages. Operators extended free mobile connectivity until Dec 2 and partners including Huawei have mobilised engineers to support recovery.

The Government launched an official donation portal, 'Stand with Sri Lanka' (https://donate.gov.lk), to channel international and domestic contributions for Cyclone Ditwah relief, stating 100% of donations will go directly to emergency aid including food, water, medical care and shelter.

CSE closed two hours early due to cyclone Ditwah; the ASPI rose 0.35% to 22,742.46 on turnover of over Rs.1.9bn, with foreign investors net selling Rs.326.3m (month-to-date outflow Rs.3.7bn). Top contributors were BUKI, AEL, BIL, LOLC and DOCK.

Colombo Stock Exchange closed 0.22% higher after trading ceased early at 12:30pm due to cyclone Ditwah; the ASPI rose 50.73 pts to 22,712.82 with turnover Rs 1.93bn. Top contributors included John Keells, Ceylinco, Aitken Spence, Dialog Axiata and Sampath Bank.

UN Global Compact Network Sri Lanka held CATALYZE 2025 on 24 November, convening business leaders including John Keells, Aitken Spence, Hemas, Hayleys, DIMO and Kelani Valley Plantations to discuss digital supply chains, gender equality, climate action, water stewardship and other sustainability priorities.

SLASSCOM's AI Asia Summit 2025 in Colombo launched Xavier, Sri Lanka's first locally conceived AI-driven robotics platform and drew 400+ attendees. The summit featured policymakers and industry partners (including Starlink by Singer as Connectivity Partner) highlighting AI adoption and policy direction.

Inclusive Media Monitoring (Pvt) Ltd (IMM) won the ASOCIO Outstanding Digital Transformation Organization Award in Taipei on Nov 7, raising Sri Lanka's profile in regional digital services. IMM, part of the CPM group, promotes its all-in-one media intelligence dashboard (from LKR 20,000/month) for real-time ad verification, multilingual social/electronic monitoring and competitor benchmarking.

Colombo market closed higher for a second straight session, with the ASPI up 0.11% to 22,844.23 and the S&P SL20 up 0.20% to 6,311.30. Market turnover was over Rs.3.4bn (38% below the monthly average), foreign investors were net sellers of Rs.124.56m, policy rates were maintained and investors showed interest in hotel counters; key movers included HNB, DOCK, DIMO, AEL and PKME.