Category: Daily Financial Times

After a stellar victory in Kolkata, South Africa Head Coach Shukri Conrad now has his eyes set on winning the series in Guwahati.

South Africa claimed their first Test win on Indian soil in 15 years after staging a remarkable comeback to script a win in Kolkata.

Elated with the achievement, Conrad is now targeting an even bigger prize, aiming to win the Test series, something South Africa have not accomplished since 2000.

‘This was right up there for us. Coming to India, playing at Eden Gardens, doing something we haven’t done for 15 years, this is right up there. We won a Test match in Pakistan, we’ve now won a Test match here, but the job’s far from done. You don’t come to a country to win a Test match, you obviously want to win the series,’ he said.

‘I’m so proud of the group in terms of the belief that they’ve got and how they pull together as a unit. It will do wonders for our psyche and it will do wonders for us going forward. Whilst we might not have the ability that a lot of teams have, or we haven’t tapped that ability yet, what we lack in that, we certainly make up for in our ability to play as a unit and the resilience we show. We never give up.’ Conrad added.

The second Test of the series is set to begin on Saturday at Guwahati.

The Ceylon Chamber of Commerce and the Gujarat Chamber of Commerce and Industry (GCCI) signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) on 13 November in Ahmedabad, Gujarat, to strengthen bilateral trade, investment, and business cooperation between Sri Lanka and Gujarat.

The MoU was signed by The Ceylon Chamber of Commerce Chairperson Krishan Balendra and GCCI President Sandeep P. Engineer.

The signing took place during the visit of Sri Lankan High Commissioner to India Mahishini Colonne, marking her first official State-level engagement since assuming office.

The initiative and arrangements leading to the signing were facilitated by Sri Lanka’s Honorary Consul in Gujarat Rakesh Shah, whose efforts played a key role in bringing the two Chambers together.

Under the MoU, The Ceylon Chamber and the GCCI will collaborate to promote business opportunities, facilitate joint ventures and partnerships, organise business-to-business (B2B) engagements, and enhance knowledge sharing between the private sectors of both economies. It is hoped that the partnership would also serve to deepen maritime and logistics cooperation and build on the complementarities between Gujarat’s major ports and Sri Lanka’s role as a regional transshipment hub.

Both Chambers expressed confidence that the MoU will open new avenues for trade, investment, and sustainable economic cooperation.

The Colombo stock market opened the week in red, falling sharply yesterday as investors booked profits.

The ASPI ended down a sharp 1.01% to close 236.07 points lower at 23,223.68 while the S and P SL20 closed 0.40% down, 25.93 points lower at 6,410.00.

Turnover was over Rs. 4.4 billion on nearly 138.8 million shares traded. Foreigners were net sellers with a net outflow of Rs. 151.8 million.

First Capital Research said the Colombo Bourse experienced notable volatility during early trading hours before retreating in the latter part of the session amid profit-taking pressure.

Retail participation remained moderate, while HNW activity continued to be relatively subdued.

CINS, SFCL, BUKI, COMB and SAMP emerged as the key negative contributors to the index. The Banking sector dominated activity, accounting for 19% of total turnover, followed by the Capital Goods and Food, Beverage and Tobacco sectors, which together contributed 38%.

The Finance Ministry has appointed Eng. Prof. Ananda Jayawardane to the Board of Bank of Ceylon as an Independent Non-Executive Director.

Prof. Jayawardane is an academic and corporate personality with experience and expertise in corporate governance in public institutions and private corporates in banking, finance, manufacturing, insurance, education and science and technology.

He completed his term as the Chairman of the Commercial Bank of Ceylon PLC in April 2024 after serving nine years in its Director Board and successfully leading the bank during the most challenging times. He brings in expertise in corporate governance, strategy, risks, credit, talent management, technology management and ESG.

He is currently a Non-Executive Director of HNB Assurance PLC, Mother Lanka Foundation and Independent Non-Executive Director of Prime Lands Residencies PLC and serves as a member of the Stakeholder Engagement Committee of the Central Bank of Sri Lanka and a member of the Corporate Governance Committee of CA Sri Lanka.

He is a past Vice-Chancellor of the University of Moratuwa, a past Chairman of the Committee of Vice-Chancellors and a past Director General of the National Science Foundation. He has also served as the Chairman of CBC Tech solutions Ltd., and was a member of the University Grants Commission, a member of the governing Councils/Director Boards of Sierra Cables PLC, Sir Arthur C Clarke Institute for Modem Technologies, National Science Foundation, Institute for Construction Training and Development, State Engineering Corporation, Postgraduate Institute of Management, Miloda Academy of Financial Studies, the Open University of Sri Lanka, Construction Industry Development Authority, Engineering Council of Sri Lanka and Green Building Council of Sri Lanka.

He is a Chartered Engineer, an International Professional Engineer, a Fellow of the Institution of Engineers, Sri Lanka, a Fellow of the Institute of Project Managers, Sri Lanka, a Fellow of the National Academy of Sciences of Sri Lanka, a Life Member of Sri Lanka Association for Advancement of Science, a Graduate Member of the Sri Lanka Institute of Directors and a Member of the Society of Structural Engineers Sri Lanka. He is also the past NDB Bank Endowed Professor in Entrepreneurship at the University of Moratuwa and a Past President of the Institution of Engineers, Sri Lanka.

He has co-authored several textbooks and has published and presented over 85 research papers both locally and internationally including innovation and entrepreneurship and delivered convocation addresses and keynotes on many occasions. He has received several awards for his research publications and leadership. He is the recipient of the National Achiever’s Award under the category of Engineering by Lions Clubs International – District 306A1, the IESL President’s Award, the Asia’s Education Excellence Award for outstanding contribution to education, Sri Lanka Education Leadership Award for education leadership, Sri Lanka Education Leadership Award for outstanding contribution to education presented by World Education Congress and CMO Asia and ‘Eminence in Engineering’ award – the highest, most prestigious life time award given by the IESL for eminence in practice of engineering.

Janashakthi Life, a subsidiary of JXG (Janashakthi Group), recently rewarded its high performers with an unforgettable experience in Bali, Indonesia. This reward coincides with Janashakthi Life celebrating its 31st anniversary in the insurance industry. This initiative reflects Janashakthi Life’s commitment to building a performance-driven and people-focused culture, one that celebrates success, inspires future growth and strengthens the shared spirit of achievement and togetherness that defines the organisation.

Rasika Peiris yesterday assumed duties as the New Commissioner General of Elections.

Rasika Peiris was appointed to the Sri Lanka Administrative Service on 2 March 1998, and joined the Department of Elections as an Assistant Election Commissioner on 15 September of the same year.

He has since served consecutively for 27 years in the Department and the Election Commission as Assistant Election Commissioner, Deputy Election Commissioner, and Additional Election Commissioner, making him one of the most senior officers in the service.

The post had been vacant since the retirement of former Commissioner General of Elections Saman Sri Ratnayake on 13 October, upon reaching the age of 60

Plantation crops such as oil palm (Elaeis guineensis), tea (Camellia sinensis), rubber (Hevea brasiliensis) and coconut (Cocos nucifera) play an important role in global agriculture. These crops contribute significantly to food security, economic growth and employment. These crops are mainly grown in tropical regions. Oil palm is the world’s most productive oil seed crop, supplying a large proportion of the global vegetative oil demand. Oil palm can yield about five times more oil than alternative crops grown for vegetable oil. Oil palm cultivation in Sri Lanka is mainly carried out in the southern province, which receives more than 3000mm of rainfall annually, and in the southern province Galle, Matara, Western province, Kalutara and Sabaragamuwa province, Kegalle districts.

The environmental conditions suitable for oil palm cultivation in Sri Lanka are a temperature of 24-32C, more than 2000mm of rainfall and more than 5 hours of sunlight per day. Oil palm cultivation was first established in the Nakiyadeniya Estate in the Galle District and later in the Galle, Matara and Kalutara Districts by removing marginal rubber and tea plantations that had reached the end of their economic life and establishing oil palm cultivation through the concept of crop diversification. At present it has now spread to the Ratnapura and Kegalle districts as well. High productivity and lower in the number of workers required and the increasing demand as a raw material for some of the daily needed products for humans are the main reasons for demanding this cultivation. At present Sri Lanka is not self-sufficient in edible oil production and spends a considerable amount of money to import edible oil to the country.

In the case of oil palm, the local harvest is fully utilised for oil production, as it yields four times more oil than coconut, and at least 20,000 ha of oil palm cultivation can meet the local oil requirement. Oil palm has the potential to produce between 04-08 metric tons of oil per hectare per year. Similarly, coconut cultivation can produce 0.8 metric tons per hectare per year. Considering the biomass production, it is also observed that oil palm is more efficient when compared to other crops. Efficient photosynthesis in the oil palm crop utilises the light energy from the sun, resulting in the production of a higher biomass compared to other crops. Oil palms are capable of sequestering more carbon per hectare than tea and coconut plantations. According to research, the carbon sequestered per hectare of oil palms per year is the range from 11-16.3 metric tons. The carbon sequestration capacity of coconut plantations ranges from 1.25-5.3 metric tons per hectare per year. Research has confirmed that the carbon sequestration potential of tea plantations grown in the lowland, central and upland areas of Sri Lanka is 6.7, 3.5, 2.3 metric tons per hectare per year respectively. The amount of carbon in the aboveground plant parts of rubber plantations in the wet and intermediate zones of Sri Lanka is 73 and 66 metric tons per hectare respectively, while this value in oil palm plantations is about 38-42 metric tons per hectare. Accordingly, the carbon sequestration capacity is higher for rubber and the value of oil palm is higher compared to tea and coconut.

Water use efficiency is scientifically defined as the percentage of biomass or economic yield produced by a crop relative to the amount of water consumed during crop growth. Several factors affect the water use efficiency of plantation crops. Climate conditions such as temperature, humidity and rainfall directly affects water loss through evaporation. Especially under water scarcity caused by climate change, oil palms have high water demands. However, due to its high productivity, water use efficiency is at an optimum level. Oil palms can also grow even under 1800-2000mm rainfall, undergoing physiological changes in dry weather conditions.

Plantation crops exhibit various adaptive mechanisms to water stress. Tea plants regulate stomatal activity to minimise yield loss under water stress. Rubber plants reduce latex production during drought conditions to conserve water, while coconut palms produce waxy coating on their leaves to minimise evaporation. Similarly, oil palm plants physiologically adapt to water stress by changing from floriferous. Coconuts, which are often grown in dry regions, are adapted to efficiently absorb water from saline sandy soils, but their yields decrease during prolonged droughts. Compared to rubber, oil palm has a greater capacity to retain rainwater. The reason for this is the nature of the trunk of the oil palm. That is, the remaining branches of the trunk provide space for this crop to absorb more rainwater. Research data shows that soil water is higher in rubber plantations compared to oil palm and tea plantations. However, the soil water content between coconut palm and tea plantations does not differ significantly. According to the water footprint, the water required for oil palm cultivation is primarily obtained from rainwater. Since the active root system of oil palm is positioned within the first 3 meters from the ground level and there is no tap root system, oil palm does not have direct impact on groundwater table.

Capital Alliance (CAL), Sri Lanka’s leading investment bank, has achieved a historic milestone – surpassing USD 1 billion (LKR 306 billion) in assets under management (AUM). This achievement cements CAL’s position as a leading independent asset manager in the country and one of the few in frontier markets to cross the billion-dollar mark.

Over the past 25 years, CAL has grown from a financial start-up into the largest full-service investment bank in Sri Lanka, offering an unparallelled level of innovation within the industry in Sri Lanka, facilitating capital markets development and establishing itself as a trusted advisor and transaction managers across multiple frontier markets. The firm’s disciplined approach to portfolio management, technology-driven investment platforms, and deep understanding of local and global markets have played a key role in building investor confidence at scale.

‘Crossing the USD 1 billion mark reflects the strength of CAL’s tech-driven investment solutions, market expertise and deep customer relationships we have built over time,’ said Kanishke Mannakkara, Group Chief Executive Officer of CAL. ‘This milestone is a testament to how innovation and insight, combined with a disciplined, data-driven approach to investing, can help unlock long term value and wealth at scale even in what are, in global terms, relatively small markets.’

CAL’s suite of investment products spans unit trusts, private wealth management, treasury investments, stockbroking and investment banking solutions, supported by a robust digital ecosystem through the CAL Online mobile and web platform. This combination of innovation and expertise has positioned CAL as a market leader driving financial inclusion and literacy in Sri Lanka.

As Sri Lanka’s economy enters a period of stabilisation and renewed growth, CAL continues to expand its footprint locally and regionally, with a focus on innovation, sustainable investment, and long-term value creation for clients and stakeholders alike.

The 2nd ICC Asia Pacific Regional Consultative Group (RCG) Meeting 2025 successfully convened in Singapore, bringing together key APAC regional and international leaders from the International Chamber of Commerce (ICC) and its National Committees (NCs).

The high-level, in-person gathering in Singapore focused on strategic priorities, collaborative regional efforts, and tackling pressing global trade issues.

The meeting commenced with welcome remarks by ICC Singapore Asia Pacific Regional Coordinator Kok Ping Soon. The Strategic Update was delivered by ICC Secretary General John Denton. Denton’s address covered regional priorities, engagement with APEC and ASEAN, and an update on Project Phoenix, culminating in a call to action.

A significant portion of the agenda was dedicated to NC Reports and Discussion, allowing National Committees to share their most successful and impactful work, outline key challenges, and explore areas for more effective collaboration to achieve stronger collective outcomes in the Asia Pacific region.

Representing ICC Sri Lanka were Chairman Shanil Fernando, and Vice Chairperson Stasshani Jayawardena. They presented the ICC Sri Lanka updates during the National Committee report session. Fernando actively engaged in key discussion points with the attending delegates throughout the meeting. Denton also commended the efforts borne by ICC Sri Lanka in terms of its engagement and on-going activities and setting up of the ICC Sri Lanka Arbitration and Mediation Hearing Centre.

The session ‘Strengthening the Network’ featured updates on key ICC initiatives for APAC NC engagement, including the ICC Travel and Tourism Initiative, presented by Deputy Secretary General – Network Julian Kassum, Global Head of Network Engagement Caroline MacDonald, and ICC Thailand’s Amornrat Saelim.

The segment ‘Regional progress under the ICC Roadmap’ discussed the ICC’s response to the escalation of trade tariffs and barriers and their impact on the APAC region. Furthermore, insights were shared on the Digitalisation of Trade and best practices.

Specialised topics such as commercialisation of intangible assets to unlock opportunities across global markets and promoting access to justice, integrity and respect for the rule of law were also presented by experts.

The meeting concluded with a final Discussion and any other business and with the closing remarks delivered by Kok Ping Soon. Attendees were also invited to an afternoon open mic session and exchange with Caroline MacDonald.

The successful RCG meeting reaffirmed the commitment of ICC’s Asia Pacific network to driving trade, advocating for rule of law, and fostering regional prosperity.

Sri Lanka’s Head Coach Sanath Jayasuriya expressed his disappointment following his team’s 3-0 defeat at the hands of Pakistan in the three-match ODI series that concluded at Rawalpindi on Sunday.

‘In the past year, we have been playing very good ODI cricket, but to lose 3-0 to Pakistan, I am very disappointed,’ said Jayasuriya at the end of the third ODI, which Sri Lanka lost by six wickets.

‘Losing I don’t mind-it is part and parcel of the game. If you take the first ODI, we should have won that. We got the opportunity to bat second and we had a reachable target of 300, even though we gave over 100 runs in the last 10 overs,’ explained Jayasuriya. ‘We had seven batsmen plus an all-rounder and we had a very good opportunity to win that game. That was my disappointment. Some of the shot selections were not the best, especially the Captain, Charith Asalanka, who played a bad shot (and got stumped)-a mistake which he accepted. There were a few others who were guilty of playing bad shots.’

‘The thing is, the batsmen are not struggling – they are getting to 30s and 40s – but I am disappointed and angry because they are getting a start and not going for a big score. You cannot do that. There is no excuse for it. You can do it once, but not repeatedly, which means there is something wrong. It is not going to help anyone – not the team, not the players and not Sri Lanka cricket.’

Only two batsmen scored fifties in the entire series for Sri Lanka compared to Pakistan, who had two centurions and five scoring fifties.

‘The difference between the two sides is that when the Pakistan batsmen were struggling, they tried to stay until the 30th or 40th over because they knew that later, the wicket will become easier to bat. We had to do the same thing, but unfortunately, we didn’t learn from them,’ said Jayasuriya.

‘The wickets are on the slower side when you bat first; it is two-paced, but with the dew and the lights on, it’s a different wicket altogether in the night. We knew that and we had to accept it. However, we couldn’t control it and adjust accordingly. Previously also, we had discussed this issue and rectified it to a great extent, but in this series, they were not able to do it,’ he added.

As regards the number of dot balls Sri Lanka played out, Jayasuriya said that at every team meeting, it had been discussed.

‘At every match, we ask one batsman to get a 100 and a century partnership and one player to get over three wickets. These are little targets which we have set for the players. They have been doing it but unfortunately, not in this series.’

With regard to batting debutant Pavan Rathnayake at number seven, Jayasuriya explained: ‘Pavan was sent down the order because we wanted to have a left-hand/right-hand combination against the spinners. The two batters in the middle were struggling to read the googly and the chinaman deliveries of Faisal Akram. At that stage, we didn’t want to send a debutant and put him in a difficult situation. That’s why we sent a left-hander to change the line and length.’

Jayasuriya accepted the fact that apart from the first ODI, Pakistan outplayed Sri Lanka in the next two matches in batting and bowling.