• Budget 2025 expected to be passed in January
• Govt. aims to provide relief to people, stabilise country
• Stock market rise not fully indicative of investor confidence

Sri Lanka’s new government expects to bring the interim budget for the first quarter of 2025 in November when the new Parliament convenes, while Budget 2025 will be passed in January next year, according to National People’s Power (NPP) Economic Council Chief Prof. Anil Jayanth Fernando.

Speaking to TV Derana yesterday (26), he said that the government will bring the interim budget in November, while Budget 2025 is expected to be passed in Parliament in January 2025.

He said that the new government will implement policies and measures mentioned in the manifesto of President Anura Kumara Dissanayake under the new Parliament in 2025.

He said that the priority of the government is to provide relief to the people and stabilise the country based on the agreements with the International Monetary Fund and creditors.

Moreover, he said that they will carefully inspect the salary increment proposal brought in by the previous government and the decision to lift the ban on vehicle imports in February 2025.

Fernando said that the government expects to minimise the salary anomalies in the state sector, and will bi-annually review the purchasing power of goods and services in the country and make adjustments in state sector wages accordingly.

Further, he said that recent gains in the Colombo Stock Exchange (CSE) don’t completely reflect confidence in the new government by the investors, as the stock exchange does not mirror the overall investor confidence of the country.

He said that the current rise in the stock market is not 100% fundamental, as “if there is build-up in confidence the market should rise gradually, but if it rises up by 100-200% then it is building up on speculation.”

Moreover, he noted that the market in Sri Lanka is not efficient, stating that “if I say the stock market rose due to build-up of confidence in the government, most probably it could fall Friday or Monday.”

Fernando added that the current bull run shows that the investors are now in profit seeking mode and to some extent they have gained confidence in the new government.