Economy

Tourist arrivals top 156,000 in first 26 days of Novembe

Published

1 year ago

November 29, 2024

Sri Lanka’s tourist arrivals have shown strong growth, rising 18% year-on-year (YoY) in the first 26 days of November with 156,174 visitors registered.

This has also propelled the year-to-date (YTD) arrivals to surpass 1.77 million, marking a 41% YoY increase compared to the same period in 2023. Sri Lanka needs to woo another 223,111 tourists in the next month to reach its annual goal of two million arrivals.

The daily arrival average climbed to 6,007 — an 18% jump from 5,105 during the same period last year and significantly higher than October’s 4,384 average.

The industry analysts opined that if the current pace continues, Sri Lanka could see just over 180,000 arrivals in November though still missing the monthly target of 155,070 set by the Sri Lanka Tourism Development Authority (SLTDA). The country requires nearly 10,473 daily arrivals to reach the monthly target.

October registered a 25% YoY increase to 135,907 arrivals, rebounding from September’s single-digit growth, the first slowdown for the year amid visa crisis and travel advisories.

India remained the leading source market in November, contributing 32,306 visitors, followed by Russia with 25,573 and Germany with 11,394. The UK which had ranked higher earlier in the year fell to fourth place with 10,268 arrivals, while Australia ranked fifth with 6,446 visitors. Other key markets included China, France, Poland, the US and the Netherlands.

India also leads the cumulative arrivals with 357,279 visitors, followed by Russia at 163,172 and the UK at 156,938.

Analysts predict tourist arrivals could exceed two million by year end, slightly below the original target of 2.3 million. “Despite this, consistent growth trajectory reflects strong recovery in the tourism sector, driven by robust demand from traditional and emerging markets.

Sri Lanka Tourism is also leveraging the country’s year-round appeal to attract a diverse mix of visitors with a new national branding campaign which is set to be launched in January 2025. Looking ahead, the sector’s focus will be on capitalising on its momentum by implementing targeted marketing campaigns and improving infrastructure to meet the growing demand.

Economy

Sri Lanka Among Countries Closing Out Complex Debt Restructurings

Published

3 hours ago

April 17, 2026

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Sri Lanka’s debt restructuring process is nearing completion, with significant progress recorded across negotiations and implementation, according to the latest 6th Co-Chairs Progress Report released by the Global Sovereign Debt Roundtable (GSDR) on April 15.

The report states that most sovereign debt restructuring cases launched during 2021 and 2022 have now been largely completed, including Sri Lanka’s, which was carried out outside the G20 Common Framework. Sri Lanka’s restructuring now involves only a small number of residual commercial creditors, while the signing of bilateral agreements with official creditors is well advanced, though not yet fully finalized.

According to the GSDR, Sri Lanka successfully completed the fourth review of its IMF-supported program in July 2025. In December 2025, following a severe cyclone, the country also received emergency financing under the IMF’s Rapid Financing Instrument. In parallel, the World Bank provided up to US$120 million in emergency support by repurposing funds from ongoing projects to assist recovery efforts and restore essential services and infrastructure.

The report notes that Sri Lankan authorities continue to engage in good-faith negotiations with the remaining commercial creditors. Residual debt yet to be restructured is estimated at about 1.7 percent of Sri Lanka’s total external debt within the restructuring perimeter as of end-2023, indicating that the bulk of the process has already been completed.

Economy

SLTB earns Rs. 1 b in six days during c services

Published

1 day ago

April 16, 2026

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The Sri Lanka Transport Board has earned Rs. 1 billion in revenue within six days by providing transport services during the New Year season, its chairman Sajeeva Nandana Kanagaratne said.

Speaking at a media briefing today, he stated that the income was generated by facilitating passengers travelling to their hometowns for the New Year.

He further noted that April 11 was recorded as the highest revenue-earning day in the organisation’s history, with earnings reaching Rs. 213 million.

Meanwhile, the National Transport Commission announced that special bus services will operate from today to transport passengers returning to Colombo and other major cities following the festive period.