Sri Lanka, Nov. 1 -- "This year, I'm just browsing," we tell ourselves.

And yet, by midnight on November 10th, screens glow across Sri Lanka. Daraz tabs open. Credit card in hand. KOKO payment plan ready. A shopping cart that looks suspiciously full. Someone's debating whether a 42% discount on a rice cooker counts as "financially responsible."

Welcome to the annual ritual of 11.11 and Black Friday in Sri Lanka - a global shopping festival that has somehow become a local season of its own.

When the World Goes on Sale

Once upon a time, 11.11 (Singles' Day) was a cheeky Chinese student celebration. Then Alibaba turned it into the biggest shopping event on Earth - last year alone, it reportedly crossed US$84 billion in global sales.

Mea...