On April 22, 2022, Sri Lanka's economic crisis deepened as the country's inflation hit a record high for the sixth consecutive month, according to official data.
The National Consumer Price Index (NCPI) rose 21.5 percent year-on-year in March, more than four times the 5.1 percent inflation of a year earlier.
Food inflation in March stood at 29.5 percent, with the state-run oil company subsequently raising the price of diesel by 64.2 percent.
The worsening economic crisis has led to clashes at nationwide demonstrations calling on President Gotabaya Rajapaksa to step down over mismanagement and corruption.
Sri Lanka asked the International Monetary Fund (IMF) for emergency assistance, but was told that the country's $51 billion external debt was 'unsustainable' and must be 'restructured' before any help.
IMF Country Director Masahiro Nozaki stated, 'When the IMF determines that a country's debt is not sustainable, the country needs to take steps to restore debt sustainability prior to IMF lending.'
The government has announced a default on its foreign debt and said precious foreign exchange will be reserved to finance essential food and medicines.
