COLOMBO, May 6 -- Sri Lanka could face shortages of essential medicines as pharmaceutical importers and manufacturers struggle under mounting exchange rate losses and rigid state-imposed price controls, industry stakeholders have warned.

The concerns come as the Sri Lankan rupee has depreciated sharply over the past six months, with the Central Bank's indicative exchange rate weakening by 5.6% from 302.6 rupees per US dollar in October 2025 to 319.5 rupees this week.

Sri Lanka remains heavily reliant on imported pharmaceuticals, with medicine imports amounting to US$667 million last year, nearly 85% of the country's total medicinal drug market.

Despite the currency slide, the National Medicines Regulatory Authority (NMRA) has not appro...