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The Fate of Spices Under Trump’s Tariffs Is Still Unclear — but the Risks Are Real
Food & Wine
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Key Points Many global spices cannot be produced in the United States, putting them at risk of dramatically increasing prices if affected by tariffs. A recent comment by Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick indicates that some agricultural products...
Sri Lanka Imposes 18% VAT on Foreign Digital Services Starting October
Lanka News Web
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July 25, 2025
By: Staff Writer July 25, Colombo (LNW): In a decisive move to align with global tax trends and expand its fiscal net, Sri Lanka will begin imposing an 18% Value Added Tax (VAT) on non-resident digital service providers from October 1, 2025. The...
ANKA Technologies shines at National Ingenuity Awards 2025
Daily FT
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From left: IT Consultant Abdul Mujeeb, Accounts Assistant Peshani Senaratne, Manager – Business Development, Sales and Partnerships Sugandhi Ariyasena, Abacus Maths Instructor Pabodhi Herath, Student Coordinator Chethika Halangoda, Associate...
No plans to slow down from Jazira's Subait Khater
The National News
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Perhaps the most telling characteristic of the successful sportsman is this: his accomplishments are so many and so varied he no longer remembers the details. Subait Khater certainly is a member of that old-school fraternity, and not only because...
Twenty scientists and diplomats worldwide will gather at the 12th AAAS-TWAS Course on Science Diplomacy
American Association for the Advancement of Science (AAAS)
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The World Academy of Sciences for the advancement of science in developing countries (TWAS) and the American Association for the Advancement of Science brought together 10 pairs of scientists and policymakers from 10 countries, including Bolivia,...
A dark, bittersweet brew: Mridula Ramesh spills the beans on coffee
Hindustan Times
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August 1, 2025
About a thousand years ago, in the mountains of Ethiopia, a shepherd boy named Kaldi saw his goats acting strangely. The next day, he followed and saw them eat red berries growing in clumps on a short tree with waxy, dark-green leaves, sheltered...
Human smuggling to Malaysia as tourist surges
New Age Bangladesh
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Rashad Ahamad 02 August, 2025, 00:31 Human smuggling from Bangladesh to Malaysia under the guise of tourist has surged as desperate jobseekers are using the tourist visa to enter the country illegally after the suspension of regular labour...
Sri Lanka stocks close up boosted by diversified financials
EconomyNext
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July 25, 2025
ECONOMYNEXT – Sri Lanka’s Colombo Stock Exchange closed up on Friday, as retail interest continued in companies that had posted good quarterly results particularly diversified financials, brokers said. The ASPI was up 0.46%, or 88.47 points, at...
Tariff cut brings relief as offers worry: economists
New Age Bangladesh
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Bangladesh and US delegates hold third round of tariff talks in Washington. | CA press wing The United States has decided to reduce the reciprocal tariff on imported goods from Bangladesh to 20 per cent from the previously announced 35 per cent...
Asia’s New Generation: Young Art Collectors from Seoul, Shanghai, Bangkok and Beyond
Frieze
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Soyoung Lee | Seoul, Korea Soyoung Lee. Photo: Jiuk Kim Installed high on a wall of collector Soyoung Lee’s home in Seoul is a dramatic fabric-and-wire sculpture shaped like a moth orchid. The recent acquisition is a piece from Korean artist...
Sri Lanka Economic and Investment Summit 2025 opens registrations
Daily FT
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The Ceylon Chamber of Commerce has announced that registrations are now open for the Sri Lanka Economic and Investment Summit 2025 (SLEIS), taking place on 2 and 3 December at the Shangri-La Colombo. This year’s event introduces an enhanced format...
Sri Lanka digital ID to be ready by Q1 2026: official
Biometric Update
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July 24, 2025
The Sri Lanka Digital ID system is expected to be ready by the first quarter of next year, according to Dr. Hans Wijayasuriya, chief adviser to the President on Digital Economy and Information Communication Technology Agency (ICTA) chairperson....
A Landmark Judgment in Sri Lanka’s Constitutional History
Groundviews
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July 26, 2025
Photo courtesy of The National A historic and far reaching ruling was delivered by the Supreme Court of Sri Lanka on July 23. The court ruled that emergency regulations imposed by then Acting President Ranil Wickremesinghe violated fundamental...
New surveillance tech challenges conventional thinking on biometric privacy
Biometric Update
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July 29, 2025
Mass surveillance and crowd security are the areas in which biometrics most frequently runs into worries about privacy and social repression. But what if you could tell what a person has in their bag from a distance, without biometrics? What if...
How China’s ‘big winner’ BYD conquered Sri Lanka’s car market
South China Morning Post
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July 26, 2025
Aggressive pricing, shrewd tax engineering and a trusted local partner have propelled China’s BYD to a commanding position in Sri Lanka’s electric vehicle and hybrid market, disrupting a sector long constrained by import restrictions and setting...
CICT Launches Sri Lankan Talent into Global Maritime Leadership
Hellenic Shipping News
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July 25, 2025
In a significant step toward global engagement and talent development, Colombo International Container Terminals (CICT), has facilitated the participation of 16 top performing Sri Lankan students from 6 leading universities in the C Blue Training...
SRI LANKA: ‘Arrests were made during a time of political crisis and many were politically…
CIVICUS
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Interviews 22 July 2025 CIVICUS discusses the criminalisation of protest in Sri Lanka with climate activist Melani Gunathilaka, co-founder of Climate Action Now Sri Lanka and member of the Debt for Climate global movement. Melani works as a...
OREL IT becomes first Sri Lankan firm to secure Tier III Data Centre certification
The Island
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July 25, 2025
In a landmark achievement for Sri Lanka’s tech industry, OREL IT has earned the TIA-942-C Design Certification for its upcoming Tier III data centre in Nawinna, Maharagama – making it the first Sri Lankan company to attain this globally recognized...
As Sri Lanka’s economy pivots from tourism, it’s well placed to benefit from global trade and geopolitical jostling – new research
The Island
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July 25, 2025
Agbo the Tusker, named after nine kings with the same name and presently celebrated as royalty among wild elephants in Sri Lanka, limps as he inches towards the rank grove of Nabada (Vitex leucoxylon) and Kumbuk (Terminalia arjuna) trees seeking...
EVs and Chinese Cars Outpace Japanese Reconditioned Vehicles Imports in Sri Lanka
Lanka News Web
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July 25, 2025
By: Staff Writer July 25, Colombo (LNW):Sri Lanka’s vehicle market has witnessed a dramatic transformation just months after the government lifted the long-standing vehicle import ban in February 2025, with electric vehicles (EVs) and brand-new...