CCPI remains steady in December

Thursday, 1 January 2026 00:23 - - {{hitsCtrl.values.hits}}

Headline inflation, as measured by the year-on-year (YoY) change in the Colombo Consumer Price Index (CCPI), remained steady in December 2025 for the second consecutive month.

Inflation returned to positive territory in August and continued its upward trend for the next two months.

The Central Bank of Sri Lanka (CBSL) yesterday said headline inflation YoY remained steady at 2.1% in December 2025, unchanged from November and October. However, inflation was up from 1.5% in September and 1.2% in August, in line with the CBSL’s near-term projections. The CBSL has an annual 5% inflation target.

Food inflation YoY was unchanged at 3% in December, the same as November, down from 3.5% in October, but up from 2.9% in September and 2% in August, while non-food inflation YoY increased to 1.8% from 1.7% in November, 1.4% in October, 0.7% in September, and 0.8% in August.

On a month-on-month basis, the CCPI reported a notable increase of 1.26% in December, after having decreased by 0.23% in November.

The Food category contributed 1.25 percentage points to this increase, reflecting the supply-side disruptions caused by the adverse weather conditions, while the Non-Food category contributed marginally by 0.01 percentage points, the CBSL said.

The CBSL said core inflation YoY, which reflects the underlying inflation trends in the economy, edged up to 2.7% in December, up from 2.4% in November, 2.2% in October, and 2% in September 2025.

Inflation projections made at the monetary policy round in November 2025 indicate a gradual acceleration of inflation towards the target of 5% in the period ahead, with the support of appropriate policies, the CBSL said.

“However”, it added, “the anticipated path could be altered by possible price changes due to the impact of the recent cyclone-related disruptions, as its full impact is still being assessed and is yet to be incorporated into inflation projections of the CBSL.”