Sri Lanka consumer inflation slows to 22.1% in May

SRI Lanka’s National Consumer Price Index (NCPI) inflation eased to 22.1 per cent year on year in May after a 33.6 per cent rise in April, the statistics department said on Wednesday (Jun 21).

The NCPI captures broader retail price inflation and is released with a lag of 21 days every month.

Food price rises eased to 15.8 per cent in May from 27.1 per cent in April, while non-food inflation was at 27.6 per cent, the Department of Census and Statistics said in a statement.

Soaring inflation has battered the economy for more than a year after a severe foreign exchange crisis set off the Indian Ocean island’s worst financial crisis in seven decades.

But after securing a US$2.9 billion bailout from the International Monetary Fund (IMF) in March, Sri Lanka is experiencing a glimmer of relief with inflation easing, its currency appreciating and reserves improving.

The island’s central bank reduced interest rates by 250 basis points earlier this month, for the first time in three years, as it shifts focus to improving growth. REUTERS