Adani Ports and Special Economic Zone Ltd. (APSEZ) on Monday said it has commenced operations at the Colombo West International Terminal (CWIT) in Sri Lanka.

The CWIT project represents a significant investment of $800 million and features a 1,400-metre quay length and 20-metre depth, enabling the terminal to handle approximately 3.2 million Twenty-foot Equivalent Units (TEUs) annually.

It is the first deep-water terminal in Colombo to be fully automated, designed to enhance cargo handling capabilities, improve vessel turnaround times and elevate the port’s status as a key transshipment hub in South Asia, Adani Ports said in a statement.

Developed under a landmark public–private partnership, the CWIT is operated by a consortium comprising India’s largest port operator, Adani Ports and SEZ Ltd, leading Sri Lankan conglomerate John Keells Holdings PLC, and the Sri Lanka Ports Authority, under a 35-year Build, Operate, and Transfer (BOT) agreement.

Adani Ports Begins Operations At Colombo Terminal

It is the first deep-water terminal in Colombo to be fully automated, designed to enhance cargo handling capabilities and elevate the port’s status as a key transshipment hub in South Asia.

• Indo-Asian News Service
• India News
• Apr 07, 2025 16:29 pm IST
  • Published OnApr 07, 2025 16:00 pm IST
  • Last Updated OnApr 07, 2025 16:29 pm IST

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The terminal is developed under a landmark publicprivate partnership.

Ahmedabad:

Adani Ports and Special Economic Zone Ltd. (APSEZ) on Monday said it has commenced operations at the Colombo West International Terminal (CWIT) in Sri Lanka.

The CWIT project represents a significant investment of $800 million and features a 1,400-metre quay length and 20-metre depth, enabling the terminal to handle approximately 3.2 million Twenty-foot Equivalent Units (TEUs) annually.

It is the first deep-water terminal in Colombo to be fully automated, designed to enhance cargo handling capabilities, improve vessel turnaround times and elevate the port’s status as a key transshipment hub in South Asia, Adani Ports said in a statement.

Developed under a landmark public–private partnership, the CWIT is operated by a consortium comprising India’s largest port operator, Adani Ports and SEZ Ltd, leading Sri Lankan conglomerate John Keells Holdings PLC, and the Sri Lanka Ports Authority, under a 35-year Build, Operate, and Transfer (BOT) agreement.

“The commencement of operations at CWIT marks a momentous milestone in regional cooperation between India and Sri Lanka,” said Gautam Adani, Chairman of the Adani Group.

“Not only does this terminal represent the future of trade in the Indian Ocean, but its opening is also a proud moment for Sri Lanka, placing it firmly on the global maritime map. The CWIT project will create thousands of direct and indirect jobs locally and unlock immense economic value for the island nation,” Gautam Adani added.

According to the billionaire industrialist, it also stands as a shining example of the deep-rooted friendship and growing strategic ties between the two neighbours and of what can be achieved through visionary public–private partnerships.

“Delivering this world-class facility in record time also reflects the Adani Group’s proven ability to efficiently execute large-scale critical infrastructure projects anywhere in the world,” said Gautam Adani.

Karan Adani, Managing Director of APSEZ, said the “project will create thousands of jobs locally and stand tall as a testament to strong neighbourly ties and shared progress”.

Construction began in early 2022 and has since achieved rapid progress. With the installation of cutting-edge infrastructure now nearing completion, the CWIT is poised to set new benchmarks in operational efficiency and reliability in regional maritime logistics.

“We are proud to see the progress in the development of the West Container Terminal, a project that strengthens Sri Lanka’s position as a regional maritime hub,” said Krishan Balendra, Chairperson, John Keells Group.

The project is one of the John Keells Group’s largest investments and is among the most significant private-sector investments in Sri Lanka.

“Together with the Sri Lanka Ports Authority and the Adani Group, we will elevate Colombo’s status as a leading transshipment hub. We are confident that the project will enhance global trade and connectivity in the region,” said Mr Balendra.

The global economic growth is set to slow down in the coming months, largely due to the trade war sparked by US President Donald Trump’s steep tariffs on virtually all trading partners, the International Monetary Fund (IMF) said on Wednesday. In its latest World Economic Outlook, the IMF warned that the US is confronting an increased risk of recession as it downgraded its outlook for all G7 nations, along with other major economies including China, India, Brazil and South Africa.

The fund cautioned that if countries fail to “urgently resolve” their trade tensions, it could further damage their growth prospects.  “If sustained, this abrupt increase in tariffs and attendant uncertainty will significantly slow global growth,” it said. 

This came as global finance chiefs swarmed Washington seeking deals with Trump’s team to lower the levies. According to White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt, 18 different countries have offered proposals so far, and Trump’s trade negotiating team is set to meet with 34 countries this week to discuss tariffs. The US President himself expressed optimism that a trade deal with China could “substantially” cut tariffs, lifting markets.

What The IMF Said

The IMF’s projections, which incorporate some but not all tariff measures introduced this year, see the global economy growing by 2.8 per cent this year, 0.5 percentage points lower than the previous World Economic Outlook (WEO) forecast in January. Global growth is then forecast to hit 3.0 per cent next year, down 0.3 percentage points from January.

“We are entering a new era as the global economic system that has operated for the last 80 years is being reset…If sustained, increasing trade tensions and uncertainty will slow global growth,” IMF chief economist Pierre-Olivier Gourinchas told reporters in Washington on Tuesday, noting that the recent US tariff announcements had more than halved the Fund’s outlook for global trade growth this year.

It expects tariffs will cause a broader increase in global prices, slightly raising its outlook for world consumer prices to 4.3 per cent for 2025, and to 3.6 per cent in 2026. 

Given the stop-start nature of Trump’s tariff rollout, the IMF introduced a cutoff date of April 4, meaning they do not include the administration’s latest salvos, which have hiked the level of new levies against China to 145 per cent. If these policies were to be taken into account and sustained, this could significantly slow global growth, the IMF said. 

In a separate report also published Tuesday, the Fund warned that Trump’s stop-start tariff rollout had also caused an increase in risks to financial stability. “Global financial stability risks have increased significantly, driven by tighter global financial conditions and heightened economic uncertainty,” the IMF said in its latest Global Financial Stability Report. 

Impact On Top US Trading Partners

Top US trading partners– including Mexico, Canada, and China– are all predicted to be negatively impacted by the Trump administration’s tariffs. 

The IMF expects China, the world’s second-largest economy, to see growth slump to 4.0 per cent this year, down from 5.0 per cent in 2024, with increased government spending failing to counteract the effect of the new levies.

The Mexican economy is now projected to contract by 0.3 per cent this year, a 1.7 percentage-point reduction from January, while Canada’s growth outlook has also been sharply reduced. 

Japan, the world’s third-largest economy, is expected to grow by just 0.6 per cent this year and next, a sharp cut from January.

The IMF expects the tariffs to act as a drag on growth in most European countries as well, as the growth outlook for the euro area is cut to 0.8 per cent in 2025, and 1.2 per cent next year.

The Fund also sharply downgraded the outlook for the Middle East but still expects economic activity to pick up from 2024, as disruptions to oil production and shipping ease, and the impact of ongoing conflicts lessens.”

In sub-Saharan Africa, growth is projected to decline slightly to 3.8 per cent this year, before recovering next year.

“For India, the growth outlook is relatively more stable at 6.2 per cent in 2025, supported by private consumption, particularly in rural areas, but this rate is 0.3 percentage point lower than that in the January 2025 WEO Update on account of higher levels of trade tensions and global uncertainty,” IMF said in its report.

The World Bank on Wednesday lowered India’s growth forecast for the current fiscal by 4 percentage points to 6.3 per cent amid global economic weakness and policy uncertainty.

In its previous estimate, the World Bank had projected India’s growth at 6.7 per cent for the fiscal year 2025-26.

In India, growth in FY24/25 disappointed because of slower growth in private investment and public capital expenditures that did not meet government targets, the World Bank said in its twice-yearly regional outlook.

“In India, growth is expected to slow from 6.5 per cent in FY24/25 to 6.3 per cent as in FY25/26 as the benefits to private investment from monetary easing and regulatory streamlining are expected to be offset by global economic weakness and policy uncertainty,” said its South Asia Development Update, Taxing Times.

On Tuesday, the International Monetary Fund (IMF) also lowered India’s GDP forecast for the current fiscal to 6.2 per cent from its January estimates of 6.5 per cent.

The World Bank report said the benefits to private investment from monetary easing and regulatory streamlining are expected to be offset by global economic weakness and policy uncertainty.

“Private consumption is expected to benefit from tax cuts, and the improving implementation of public investment plans should boost government investment, but export demand will be constrained by shifts in trade policy and slowing global growth,” it said.

It further said that amid increasing uncertainty in the global economy, South Asia’s growth prospects have weakened, with projections downgraded in most countries in the region.

Stepping up domestic revenue mobilisation could help the region strengthen fragile fiscal positions and increase resilience against future shocks, it said.

The Washington-headquartered multilateral agency has projected regional growth to slow to 5.8 per cent in 2025, 0.4 percentage points below October projections before ticking up to 6.1 per cent in 2026.

This outlook is subject to heightened risks, including from a highly uncertain global landscape, combined with domestic vulnerabilities, including constrained fiscal space.

“Although tax rates in South Asia are often above the average in developing economies, most tax revenues are lower. On average during 2019-23, government revenues in South Asia totalled 18 per cent of GDP, below the 24 per cent of GDP average for other developing economies,” it said.

Revenue shortfalls are particularly pronounced for consumption taxes but are also sizable for corporate and personal income taxes, the report said.

In Bangladesh, the report said the growth is expected to slow in FY24/25 to 3.3 per cent amid political uncertainty and persistent financial challenges, and the growth rebound in FY25/26 has been downgraded to 4.9 per cent.

For Pakistan, the World Bank said its economy continues to recover from a combination of natural disasters, external pressures, and inflation, and is expected to grow by 2.7 per cent in FY24/25 and 3.1 per cent in FY25/26.

In Sri Lanka, the government has made further progress with debt restructuring, and a projected rebound in investment and external demand is expected to lift growth in 2025 to 3.5 per cent before it returns to 3.1 per cent in 2026.

Iranian Foreign Ministry spokesman Esmaeil Baghaei has strongly condemned fresh US sanctions on individuals and entities in Iran and other countries on the pretext of cooperating with Tehran in different areas, calling them a clear sign of US attempts at “economic terrorism”.

The sanctions imposed over the past few days were a clear sign of US policymakers’ insistence on law-breaking and violation of other countries’ rights and interests, as well as their bids to disrupt friendly and legal relations among developing states through economic terrorism, Baghaei said on Thursday in a statement.

They are “another conspicuous proof of the US decision makers’ contradictory approach and lack of goodwill and seriousness in advancing the path of diplomacy,” he added.

Baghaei was reacting to sanctions imposed by the US Treasury Department and State Department on Tuesday and Wednesday respectively, on six Iran-based individuals and 13 entities in Iran and other countries for their alleged involvement in trading Iranian petroleum and petrochemicals and procurement of ballistic missile propellant ingredients on behalf of the Iran’s Islamic Revolution Guards Corps, Xinhua news agency reported.

The US said on Wednesday it was imposing sanctions on five companies based outside Iran involved in selling Iranian oil.

US Secretary of State Marco Rubio said: “So long as Iran attempts to generate oil and petrochemical revenues to fund its destabilising activities, and support its terrorist activities and proxies, the United States will take steps to hold both Iran and all its partners engaged in sanctions evasion accountable.”

The move came ahead of a fourth round of Iran-US talks on Saturday in Rome, where Tehran is seeking relief from sanctions in return for curbs on its nuclear programme.

Since returning to office in January, US President Donald Trump has reinstated a campaign of “maximum pressure” on Iran, mirroring his approach during his first term, while also calling for dialogue.

In March, he sent a letter to Iran’s Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, who has the final say in major state policies, urging talks and warning of possible military action if Iran refused.

During his first term, Trump withdrew the US from the 2015 nuclear deal between Iran and world powers and reimposed biting sanctions, prompting the Islamic Republic to roll back its commitments.

It came as the fourth round of the Omani-mediated indirect talks between Iran and the US, which was originally scheduled for Saturday in Rome, has been postponed.

Budget 2025 Economic Survey Updates: The Budget Session of Parliament began on Friday (January 31) with President Droupadi Murmu’s addresses the joint session of both Houses in the morning. Soonafter, Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman tabled the Economic Survey 2025 in Parliament. 

The Economic Survey has pegged India’s GDP growth at 6.3-6.8 per cent in financial year 2025-26 on the back of strong fundamentals, calibrated fiscal consolidation and stable private consumption.

“…The fundamentals of the domestic economy remain robust, with a strong external account, calibrated fiscal consolidation and stable private consumption. On balance of these considerations, we expect that the growth in FY26 would be between 6.3 and 6.8 per cent,” the survey said.

With regards to inflation, the Survey said risk from higher commodity prices seems limited in FY26. However, geopolitical tensions still an issue, it added.Food inflation is likely to soften in Q4 FY25 with seasonal easing of vegetable prices and kharif harvest arrivals.

Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman is all set to present the 8th straight Budget tomorrow. Sitharaman’s budget for the fiscal year starting April 2023 is her eighth straight since 2019, one being a vote-on-account last year. 

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