Sri Lanka, March 3 -- Sri Lanka's external sector delivered a stronger-than-expected start to 2026, with January's numbers pointing to a more broad-based foreign exchange cushion.
The data released by the Central Bank of Sri Lanka showed that the external current account recorded a larger surplus of US $ 369.7 million in January 2026, compared with both recent months and January 2025 (US $ 99.8 million). The performance follows a provisional surplus of US $ 1.7 billion for 2025.
The merchandise trade deficit narrowed on a year-on-year basis, supported by a stronger export growth, relative to the imports.
However, the improvement was tempered by a deterioration in the terms of trade. The import prices rose at a faster pace than the ex...