Business

CB Governor confident inflation will fall to single digit by end of 2023

Published

3 years ago

2023/02/27

Thilina Walpola

Sri Lanka eyes IMF first tranche in March 2023

Last year’s economic contraction expected to be around 7.5%- 8.0%

This year expected to see stability without a contraction

Sequencing of policy action to be continued

By Sanath Nanayakkare

I clearly see that by the end of the year, inflation will fall to single digit, and I can say that with confidence as the Governor of the Central Bank, Dr. Nandalal Weerasinghe said during an interview recently.

“At the time the IMF staff and the Sri Lankan authorities reached a staff-level agreement in September 2022 to support Sri Lanka under an Extended Fund Facility (EFF) of about US$ 2.9 billion, their forecast was Sri Lanka’s inflation would exceed 70% by December 2022. Many people thought inflation would increase by 100%. In fact, food inflation soared to 95%. But having noted the higher than expected escalation of headline inflation and the increased persistence of high inflation, we increased interest rates to contain it. Now inflation has been trending down steadily since September 2022. I clearly see that by the end of the year, inflation will decline to single digit,” he said.

When he was told that some people accuse him for the economic contraction triggered by high interest rates, he replied,” When economic contraction takes place, it hurts everyone. Trade volumes decline, industrial outputs decline and the impacts are felt at all levels. However, for the country to get out of the economic crisis, painful measures needed to be taken which could lead to economic contraction, but that’s the only way out to stabilize the economy. If there hadn’t been an economic crisis, there would have been no need for contracting the economy. Imagine what would have happened if we hadn’t increased interest rates. Interest rate is a tool we use to contain high inflation,” he said.

“Businesses suffer mainly because of high inflation that has a direct impact on their cost of production. When upward inflation is controlled, the cost of production can be controlled and the businesses can operate well with consumers’ purchasing power intact. Inflation is the main enemy of any economy. So tackling inflation is our main responsibility and that’s what we have done. When inflation goes down, interest rates will also go down. And also when the uncertainty in the market abates, interest rates will go down. It is not logical to assume that interest rates will remain at the same level for ever. We controlled the inflation by increasing interest rates. It was like systematically preventing the blowing up of a highly inflated balloon. If it hadn’t been done, the economy would have been in smithereens. Talks with the IMF, debt sustainability, increasing interest rates, balancing of monetary expansion should have been done when the circumstances demanded to do so. If those actions had been taken at the correct time, inflation wouldn’t have been this high. But now there is no other way to get out of the situation we are in, “he said.

Asked whether he hoped the first tranche of the IMF would be released soon, he said,” We strongly hope that we will get the IMF facility’s first tranche in March, 2023. And when we get that, it will instill the confidence of multilateral bodies such as the World Bank and ADB in our financial discipline to give us loans at concessionary rates. They have already agreed to do so. In addition to that, there will be more foreign inflows to our equity market and foreign investment portfolio. These will ease our balance of payment issue, help lower our interest rates and rationalize our exchange rate. Then the 3-month T-Bill yield rate which is still high will move in line with Central Bank’s policy rates.

With the realization of the IMF facility, uncertainty-driven market interest rates will dissipate and will come down to normal levels. This can’t still happen because risk-free government security rates are still at 30% – though down from its previous 33%. Prime lending rates are still affected by this. Many have complained to me that interest rates are too high, and therefore, it’s difficult to do business and they find it very difficult to repay their loans. That is true. The reason for this situation is the lack of foreign currency.

So when we have more foreign currency, interest rates can be lowered without affecting our foreign reserves, while keeping our imports under control. We can’t go back to a chaotic situation like in June 2022. Last year could have seen an economic contraction of 7.5- 8.0%. This year we need to stabilize the economy and achieve stable performance in all four quarters. This has to be done very carefully with proper sequencing so that all sectors can operate smoothly. Although the situation appears to be normal on the facade, it is still not so. There is still a deficit. That’s why the constant sequencing of our policy action is crucial,” the Governor said.

All News Advertisement

Business

Focus on developing the Coconut and Food & Beverage export industries into a USD 3 billion economy within the next two years

Published

11 hours ago

2026/06/27

Priyan

A discussion was held on Friday (26) afternoon at the Presidential Secretariat between President Anura Kumara Dissanayake and industrialists in the coconut and food and beverage manufacturing sectors on developing the coconut and food and beverage export industries into a USD 3 billion economy within the next two years.

Accordingly, the objective is to expand the coconut-based export industry into a USD 2 billion sector and the food and beverage export industry into a USD 1 billion sector, and extensive discussions were held on the plans required to achieve these targets.

The President stated that the Government is prepared to provide every possible form of incentive necessary to promote export diversification and encourage value-added products.

Proposals and suggestions aimed at developing these industries were also presented during the meeting, and the President further noted that future plans would be formulated after taking all such proposals and recommendations into consideration.

The President also expressed agreement to provide incentives for establishing industries in the Northern Province and assured that the Government would extend its fullest support for setting up coconut-based manufacturing industries in the region.

Attention was also focused on plans to streamline the importation of raw materials required for export production while safeguarding domestic producers. President Anura Kumara Dissanayake further stated that his Government’s objective is to build the country’s economy into an export-oriented production economy by strengthening domestic supply chains.

Minister of Labour and Deputy Minister of Finance and Planning Anil Jayantha Fernando; Secretary to the Ministry of Finance, Planning and Economic Development, Dr Harshana Suriyapperuma; Secretary to the Ministry of Industry and Entrepreneurship Development, Thilaka Jayasundara; and Chairman of the Export Development Board, Mangala Wijesinghe, were among those present.

The President of the Sri Lanka Food Processors Association, Aruna Senanayake; Vice President Rasika Seneviratne; Managing Director of CBL Group, Shyamali Wickramasinghe; Chief Executive Officer of SriLankan Catering Ltd, Mangala Wijesekera; Managing Director of Ma’s Tropical Food Processing (Pvt) Ltd, Mario D. Alwis; Chairman of the Consumer Foods Sector of John Keells Food Holdings PLC, Daminda Gamlath; together with a number of leading business leaders from the food production sector were also present.

President’s Media Division (PMD)

Business

Sri Lanka Retailers’ Association unveils strategic roadmap for the future at 9th AGM

Published

21 hours ago

2026/06/27

Thilina Walpola

The newly elected Office Bearers and Executive Council of the Sri Lanka Retailers’ Association for 2026–2027.

The Sri Lanka Retailers’ Association (SLRA) successfully held its 9th Annual General Meeting (AGM) on 23 June 2026 at Hilton Colombo Residencies, bringing together members of the country’s organized retail sector to review the Association’s achievements over the past year and outline its strategic priorities for the future.

The AGM formally adopted the Annual Report and Audited Accounts for the financial year 2025/26 and elected the Office Bearers and Executive Council for the year 2026–2027.

Infiyaz M. Ali, Director of Healthguard Pharmacy Ltd, was announced as President of the Sri Lanka Retailers’ Association for 2026–2027. He will be supported by Mahesh Wijewardena, Executive Director and Group Chief Executive Officer of Singer (Sri Lanka) PLC, as Senior Vice President, and Kumar De Silva, CEO of SPAR SL Private Ltd, as Vice President.

The newly appointed Executive Council comprises senior representatives from leading retail organizations across Sri Lanka, reflecting the Association’s continued commitment to representing the diverse interests of the retail sector.

Addressing the gathering, President Infiyaz M. Ali emphasized the importance of collaboration, innovation, and industry advocacy in driving the next phase of growth for Sri Lanka’s retail sector.

“Retail continues to be one of the most dynamic sectors of the Sri Lankan economy. As consumer expectations evolve and technology reshapes the industry, the role of SLRA is to create opportunities for knowledge sharing, collaboration, and collective action. We remain committed to supporting our members and contributing to the sustainable growth of the retail ecosystem,” he stated.

The AGM was honoured by the presence of Wasantha Samarasinghe, Minister of Trade, Commerce, Food Security and Cooperative Development, who attended as Chief Guest. In his address, the Minister highlighted the importance of the retail sector as a key contributor to economic development, employment generation, and consumer welfare, while emphasizing the need for stronger public-private collaboration to strengthen the industry’s competitiveness.

Members also had the opportunity to gain insights from the Guest Speaker, Chayu Damsinghe, Head of Macroeconomic Advisory at Frontier Research, who shared perspectives on Sri Lanka’s economic outlook, emerging business trends, and the opportunities and challenges facing the private sector in the years ahead.

A key highlight of the evening was the presentation on the upcoming Sri Lanka Retail Forum 2026, SLRA’s flagship industry event, which will be held under the theme “Retail Without Boundaries – Building the Next Growth Engine.” The forum is expected to bring together more than 500 industry leaders, retailers, entrepreneurs, policymakers, technology providers, and investors to discuss the trends shaping the future of retail.

The Association reaffirmed its commitment to supporting retailers through industry advocacy, professional development initiatives, policy engagement, and knowledge-sharing platforms that foster innovation and business growth.

Since its establishment in 2015, SLRA has played a pivotal role in bringing together retailers from diverse sectors including FMCG, fashion, healthcare, consumer electronics, and digital commerce, creating a unified voice for the industry.

With a renewed leadership team and an ambitious programme of activities planned for the year ahead, SLRA looks forward to working closely with its members and stakeholders to strengthen Sri Lanka’s retail sector and contribute to the country’s economic development.

Business

Month-end profit-takings drive stock trading; indices up

Published

21 hours ago

2026/06/27

Thilina Walpola

CSE trading was yesterday driven by month- end profit-takings, market analysts said.Amid those developments both indices moved upwards. The All Share Price Index went up by 2.77 points, while the S and P SL20 rose by 10.91 points.

Turnover stood at Rs 1.91 billion with two crossings. Those crossings were; ACL Cables 2.1 million shares crossed to the tune of 209 million; its shares traded at Rs 100 and Hayleys 100,000 shares crossed for Rs 24.1 million; its shares traded at Rs 240.

In the retail market companies that mainly contributed to the turnover were: Hayleys Rs 141 million (587,000 shares traded), Lanka Realty Rs 105 million (1.8 million shares traded), CIC (Non Voting) Rs 81 million (3.1 million shares traded), HNB Finance Rs 79 million (8.3 million shares traded), Dialog Axiata Rs 56.7 million (1.2 million shares traded), Colombo Dockyard Rs 48.6 million (371,000 shares traded) and Singer SriLanka Rs 46.6 million (586,000 shares crossed).

During the day 63.9 million share volumes changed hands in 18300 transactions.

It is said that manufacturing sector counters, especially Hayleys, performed well while construction related companies, especially ACL Cables, also performed well. Banking sector counters, especially HNB, were also notable on the floor.

Meanwhile, Lee Hedges concluded negotiations with Amana Bank to sell and transfer its land and premises in Kollupitiya for a total consideration of Rs 2.7 billion, with the transaction completed on June 25, 2026.

Lee Hedges shares were trading up 2.52 percent, at Rs.325.75, while Amana Bank was up 1.13 percent at Rs.26.80.

Yesterday the rupee was quoted at Rs 336.90/337.00 to the US dollar in the spot market, from Rs 337.25/35 the previous day, while bond yields were quoted slightly higher, dealers said.

The telegraphic transfer rate for Sri Lanka’s rupee against the US dollar was 332.3416 buying, 342.0372 selling; the euro was 376.2315 selling, 389.9580 buying; and the pound was 436.5994 buying, 451.8110 selling.

By Hiran H Senewiratne