ECONOMYNEXT – In 2025, Sri Lanka navigated a turbulent path beneath the brand new Nationwide Folks’s Energy (NPP) authorities, balancing financial stabilization post-2022 disaster with reforms, solely to be derailed by the catastrophic Cyclone Ditwah in late November.
Drawing from EconomyNext’s intensive reporting—centered on financial system, enterprise, and coverage — the 12 months noticed optimism in tourism and development forecasts, IMF-backed progress, and financial features, however ended with catastrophe’s shadow. Beneath are the important thing tales that garnered widespread protection in 2025:
Jan 14 – Sri Lanka President Anura Kumara Dissanayake undertook a four-day official go to to China. Through the go to, he engaged in high-level discussions with President Xi Jinping, Premier Li Qiang, and different senior Chinese language officers, aiming to strengthen bilateral relations and discover avenues for enhanced cooperation between the 2 nations. Sri Lanka signed 15 agreements with China on this go to after the bilateral talks between President Disanayake and his Chinese language counterpart Xi Jinping. Through the go to, Sri Lanka renewed a USD 1.4 billion price Yuan foreign money swap with China and signed a USD 3.7 billion funding cope with Sinopec for a state-of-the-art oil refinery with a capability of 200,000 barrels per day manufacturing.
Jan 22 – Sri Lanka’s DFCC Financial institution bought 75,500,001 bizarre voting shares it held in Acuity Companions (Pvt) Ltd, representing a 50 % stake, to Hatton Nationwide Financial institution for six.5 billion rupees after the Securities and Alternate Fee of Sri Lanka authorised the sale.
Feb 9 – Sri Lanka suffered a cascading energy failure with the utility supplier Ceylon Electrical energy Board Engineers’ Union citing the shortcoming of the grid to get better from shocks as a consequence of a big quantity of rooftop solar energy as the explanation.
Feb 13 – India’s Adani Group introduced its determination to withdraw from its wind energy offers with Sri Lanka after the island nation’s new authorities mentioned it needed to renegotiate the venture for a lower cost of under 6 US cents per kilowatt-hour from the sooner agreed 8.26 US cents.
Feb 17 – President Disanayake offered his maiden full-year finances which omitted the implementation of imputed rental earnings tax introduced by the earlier authorities whereas anticipating the vast majority of the income from automobile imports.
March 1 – The Worldwide Financial Fund authorised the discharge of a 334 million greenback tranche beneath Sri Lanka’s EFF program, urging continued reforms, tax collections and higher state vitality pricing.
March 7 – Sri Lanka inked agreements on restructuring 369 billion yen (USD 2.5 billion) with the Japanese authorities and Japan Worldwide Cooperation Company.
March 19 – Sri Lanka’s Police chief Deshabandu Tennakoon, who had been evading arrest after a court docket order, surrendered to court docket. The Justice of the Peace’s Court docket in Sri Lanka’s Southern district of Matara issued an order on February 27 for the arrest of Tennakoon over a 2023 capturing incident throughout which a policeman was killed.
April 3 – US President Donald Trump imposed a 44 % tax on Sri Lanka in an govt order which he claimed was a reduced reciprocal of about half the taxes and boundaries imposed by the island nation on America. Sri Lanka’s ‘reciprocal discounted tax’ was half of a deemed 88 % in taxes charged on US merchandise, in keeping with Trump.
April 4 – Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi visited Sri Lanka on a three-day official go to and introduced the conclusion of Indian debt restructuring with Sri Lanka with sharply decrease rates of interest, and writing of USD 100 million mortgage.
Might 6 – Sri Lanka held an extended delayed nation-wide Native Authorities (LG) ballot for the primary time in seven years. President Dissanayake’s Marxist Janatha Vimukthi Peramuna (JVP)-led, ruling, Nationwide Folks’s Energy (NPP) received most seats in over 260 of 339 native authorities, although it did not get an outright majority in all. The election noticed low turnout of round 60 %.
Might 23 – Sri Lanka’s Central Financial institution lower its key coverage charge charges by 25 foundation factors as a consequence of decrease than projected inflation and anticipated decrease exterior demand from geopolitical uncertainties. It lowered its lending window charge to eight.25 % and the enforceable deposit facility to 7.25 %.
June 17 – Sri Lanka signed the settlement with France to reschedule a debt inventory of 390 million euros till 2042 with a 5-year grace interval and a cap on unique rates of interest.
June 23 – Harshana Suriyapperuma, former Deputy Minister of Finance and Planning was appointed Secretary to the Treasury, succeeding Mahinda Siriwardena, the official who oversaw the financial system in the course of the 2022 monetary disaster.
June 23 – United Nations Excessive Commissioner for Human Rights Volker Türk got here to Sri Lanka on a four-day official go to and visited the location of the Chemmani mass grave within the North of the island nation and known as for neutral investigations.
July 2 – The Worldwide Financial Fund’s Government Board authorised the fourth assessment beneath an Prolonged Fund Facility for Sri Lanka. The completion of the assessment allowed Sri Lanka to attract down about 350 million US {dollars} (254 Particular Drawing Rights).
July 24 – Sri Lanka’s Supreme Court docket ordered the respondents within the X-Press Pearl catastrophe to pay USD 1 billion as compensation for the hurt brought on to Sri Lanka’s marine and coastal setting, and the numerous losses suffered by the island nation and the fishing business. The MV X-Press Pearl catastrophe stands as Sri Lanka’s worst marine environmental disaster. On Might 20, 2021, the Singapore-flagged container ship caught fireplace off the coast of Colombo whereas carrying a cargo that included 25 tons of nitric acid, different hazardous chemical compounds, and over 1,500 containers.
July 28 – Sri Lanka Customs detained round 1,000 Chinese language-made BYD electrical automobiles in six consignments that arrived within the island over the declaration of motor capability concern which is used to calculate taxes. Customs have declared a motor capability of 100 kiloWatts however there have been considerations that the automobiles are often produced with a 150kW motor, which attracts a better charge of responsibility in Sri Lanka.
Aug 1 – US reciprocal tariff for Sri Lanka was revised down to twenty % from 44 % by way of an govt order. Sri Lanka’s charge is just like that of Bangladesh, Vietnam, Malaysia (19), Indonesia (19), Thailand (19), Pakistan (19), and decrease than India (25).
Aug 2 – Sri Lanka’s Metropolis of Desires built-in resort, constructed by John Keells Holdings, with a on line casino and Nuwa lodge by its companion Melco Resorts and Leisure, was launched with an expectation of repositioning Colombo as a high finish tourism market. The 1.2 billion US greenback built-in resort was conceptualized in 2010-2011.
Aug 5 – Sri Lanka parliament eliminated Inspector Common of Police Deshabandu Tennakoon from his submit by way of voting after he was discovered responsible of a number of allegations levelled in opposition to him. The ruling NPP introduced a decision to take away him by way of a parliament vote. The decision noticed 177 legislators backing with one abstaining from voting within the 225-member parliament.
Aug 22 – Sri Lanka ex-President Ranil Wickremesinghe was arrested and remanded over alleged misuse of public funds for himself and his employees throughout a stop-over within the UK the place he attended the award of an honorary professorship to his spouse whereas getting back from the UN Common Meeting within the US in 2023.
Sept 4 – Sri Lanka determined to liquidate 33 state enterprises which had been not energetic and had been arrange for functions which longer existed. Among the many corporations embrace Mihin Lanka, a finances airline, Lanka Cement Firm, Lanka Logistics, Hambantota Port Administration Firm, Expressway Transport Firm.
Sept 19 – S&P International Scores upgraded Sri Lanka’s sovereign score to CCC+ from Selective Default (SD) on a steady outlook citing the island nation’s financial system had recovered steadily from its 2022 financial disaster, however its debt burden stays excessive even after the restructuring of most of its exterior debt.
Oct 9 – The Worldwide Financial Fund mentioned it had reached a staff-level settlement on the fifth assessment beneath Sri Lanka’s prolonged fund facility association.
Nov 4 – Sri Lanka Cupboard determined to not implement any wind energy tasks within the nation’s Northwestern coastal island of Mannar besides three personal sector tasks amid public protests.
Nov 7 – Sri Lanka’s income might be near 16 % of gross home product and debt might be right down to round 96.8 % of GDP, President Dissanayake mentioned presenting the finances for 2026.
Nov 20 – SriLankan Airways introduced that it had restructured its defaulted bonds with a 15 % haircut which is able to trade for money and a 4 % amortizing authorities bond.
Nov 20 – Cyclone Ditwah hit Sri Lanka and greater than 800 had been both useless or went lacking within the devastation. The pure catastrophe is taken into account the worst catastrophe because the 2004 tsunami.
Dec 5 – President Dissanayake introduced sweeping reduction for people who find themselves affected by Cyclone Ditwah-hit devastation from 72.2 billion rupees over the following 25 days.
Dec 19 – The Government Board of the IMF authorised emergency financing beneath the Fast Financing Instrument (RFI), offering Sri Lanka with rapid entry to about 206 million {dollars} after the Ditwah catastrophe. (Colombo/December 31/2025)
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