Tuesday Mar 03, 2026
Tuesday Mar 03, 2026
Tuesday, 3 March 2026 06:34 - - {{hitsCtrl.values.hits}}
Sri Lanka’s external current account recorded a surplus of $ 369.7 million in January, more than tripling from $ 99.8 million a year earlier, as export growth outpaced imports and remittance inflows remained strong, according to the Central Bank of Sri Lanka’s (CBSL) latest External Sector Performance report.
The merchandise trade deficit narrowed on a year-on-year (YoY) basis to $ 654.5 million in January from $ 732.7 million a year earlier, with merchandise exports rising 9.1% to $ 1.15 billion, while imports increased at a slower 1% to $ 1.8 billion.
Vehicle imports, including personal and commercial vehicles, amounted to $ 224 million in January 2026, compared to $ 301 million in December 2025.
The terms of trade deteriorated compared to January 2025, as import prices rose at a faster pace than export prices.
The surplus in the services account declined marginally to $ 406.4 million in January 2026 from $ 418.3 million a year earlier, reflecting faster growth in services outflows relative to inflows. Services inflows increased 4.1% to $ 734.4 million, while outflows rose 14.1% to $ 328 million.
Tourist earnings were estimated at $ 378.3 million in January 2026, compared to $ 400.7 million a year earlier. Meanwhile, expenditure on overseas travel surged 154.5% YoY to $ 133.4 million.
Workers’ remittances amounted to $ 751.1 million in January 2026, recording a 31.1% increase from the same month of the previous year.
In the primary income account, the net outflow narrowed to $ 122.6 million in January 2026 from $ 143 million a year earlier.
On the financial account, foreign investments in Government securities recorded a net inflow of $ 16.6 million in January 2026, while foreign investments in the Colombo Stock Exchange, including primary and secondary market transactions, recorded a net outflow of $ 21.9 million.
Gross official reserves, including the swap facility with the People’s Bank of China, stood at $ 6.8 billion at end-January 2026, with the CBSL remaining a net buyer of foreign exchange from the domestic market during the month.
As of end-February 2026, the Sri Lankan Rupee recorded a year-to-date (YTD) appreciation of 0.2% against the US Dollar.
For 2025 as a whole, the current account recorded a provisional surplus of $ 1.73 billion, up 43.8% from $ 1.21 billion in 2024. The merchandise trade deficit widened to $ 7.9 billion in 2025 from $ 6.07 billion in 2024, as imports rose 14% to $ 21.48 billion while exports increased 6.3% to $ 13.58 billion.
Workers’ remittances reached $ 8.08 billion in 2025, up 22.8%, while net services inflows rose 7.9% to $ 3.71 billion. Gross official reserves increased by $ 702.8 million during 2025.
