People

Sri Lanka’s suicide on the rise after worst currency crisis

Melkishiya Andrew

Wednesday April 26, 2023 10:35 am

By Melkishiya Andrew

Wednesday April 26, 2023 10:35 am

ECONOMYNEXT – The suicide rate in Sri Lanka is significantly higher compared to years prior to the currency crisis, which has resulted in unemployment and redundancies, psychiatrists have claimed.

“There is no data received for the years 2022 and 2023. For 2023 only four months have gone by this year, but we are receiving statistics that the number has increased and is much higher within the last four months,” Consultant Psychiatrist from the National Hospital of Sri Lanka Dr. Chathurie Suraweera said addressing the press briefing.

Yearly, Sri Lanka reports around 3,000 cases of suicide with about eight to nine cases reported every day, Suraweera said.

Reasons for the apparent increase in the number of suicides is related to the economic plight felt by the people resulting from increased cost of living, unemployment and instability.

“In the last four years, the unemployment rate has gone up globally also and the adjustment from employed to unemployed may lead to a state of depression”, Sajeewana Amarasinghe from the National Institute of Mental Health said, speaking at the same press conference.

Suicide from consumption of pesticides and overdosing on medicines have decreased, while suicide from hanging and other physical means has increased.

“Three thousand cases of suicide are reported every year and close to eight or nine incidents are reported daily. There was a gradual fall in cases, but there is a slight rise due to the current economic crisis,” said Suraweera.

Seventeen cases of suicide per 100,000 individuals were reported, she said.

In 1995, Sri Lanka topped the suicide mortality rate with 47 per 100,000 inhabitants which was the peak during that specific period of time.

Studies show that many suicide deaths can be prevented by bans on specific pesticides. In Sri Lanka, for instance, bans are thought to have led to 93, 000 fewer suicide deaths between 1995 and 2015.

A report published in 2019 by the World Health Organization (WHO) titled “Preventing Suicide”, noted that countries that banned pesticides were able to minimize suicide deaths.

In Sri Lanka, there is a ban on certain agrochemicals.

Accordingly, there are several methods to prevent an individual from committing suicide, like visiting to the nearest mental health professional or calling 1926 the National Mental Health Helpline which is dedicated to provide 24/7, free and confidential support by phone and text message (SMS). (Colombo/ April25/2023)

Economy

Sri Lanka CB expects ease of Middle East conflict in its inflation projection: Official

Saturday October 3, 2026 2:11 pm

ECONOMYNEXT – Sri Lanka’s Central Bank expects the current Middle East conflict to ease and it to help curtail its inflation to the targeted 5 percent level in the second quarter of next year, a top Central Bank official said.

The Central Bank has projected inflation to be in the high single digits through the first quarter of 2027 and then ease to 5 percent.

Inflation in September remained at a 37-month high of 8 percent and has been above the Central Bank’s upper target limit of 7 percent for the past three months.

“We expect with the ease of the Middle East conflict going forward, and also the base effect from the second quarter onwards will.. help to decelerate inflation,” L R C Pathberiya, the head of the Central Bank’s Economic Research Department told reporters in a media briefing on Wednesday.

“So we expect inflation to stabilize around 5% from Q2 onwards, and it will gradually move towards 5%.”

He said although inflation remains high, inflation expectations for medium term remain broadly anchored around the target of 5 percent.

Central Bank Governor Nandalal Weerasinghe, in an August interview with Bloomberg stated that if oil prices remain around $80 a barrel toward the end of this year Sri Lanka can manage inflation and expected it to come down to the target level of 5% “towards end of this year and early next year.”

However, Brent crude prices have already risen above US$100 per barrel.

“Our baseline incorporates external global oil price forecasts published by institutional analysts, including projections from institutions like JP Morgan, alongside baseline projections from international agencies such as the IMF’s World Economic Outlook and global macroeconomic models,” Weerasinghe told reporters on Wednesday when asked about the Central Bank’s prediction of easing the Middle East conflict in its inflation projection.

“We feed these independent forecasts directly into our analytical models,” he said,

“Because no entity can forecast global oil price movements with absolute certainty, these assumptions are updated periodically.”

“We do not generate proprietary forecasts for world oil prices; rather, our outlook reflects prevailing independent global assessments.If those baseline external assumptions shift, our domestic projections will adjust accordingly.” (Colombo/October 03/2026)

Economy

Sri Lanka’s 5% inflation target unchanged for next three years: CB

Friday October 2, 2026 6:45 pm

ECONOMYNEXT – Sri Lanka’s inflation target for the next three years through October 2029 will be maintained at 5 percent and the agreement was signed between the government and the Central Bank, the monetary authority said in a statement on Friday.

The new Monetary Policy Framework Agreement (MPFA) in terms of the latest Central Bank of Sri Lanka Act was signed between President Anura Kumara Dissanayake in his capacity as the Minister of Finance and Central Bank Governor Nandalal
Weerasinghe on Thursday (01), it said.

As per the new MPFA, the Central Bank shall aim to maintain quarterly headline inflation rate at 5% with a margin of ±2 percentage points. This means the Central Bank has to maintain the inflation between 3% and 7%.

The move comes at a time when the Central Bank has failed to maintain the inflation target at its upper limit of 7 percent in the last three months. The Bank has blamed =higher energy price for the deviation following the Middle East conflict.

As per the new Central Bank Act, the inflation target and related parameters are reviewed once in every three years, or at shorter intervals if exceptional circumstances so warrant.

“As part of the review, the Central Bank undertook a comprehensive technical assessment that considered Sri Lanka’s economic structure, historical and empirical evidence, monetary policy considerations, the credibility of the framework, stakeholder views, and international experience and practices,” the Central Bank said in a statement.

“Based on the findings of the review, the Central Bank communicated its proposal to the Ministry of Finance. The Ministry, after careful consideration, accepted the recommendation.”

Critics have argued that a 5% inflation target is too high and it should be reduced to 2%. However, the Central Bank has said such reduction would have an adverse impact on the country’s economic growth. (Colombo/October 02/2026)

Bonds & Forex

Sri Lanka rupee closes at 330.55/65 to US dollar spot, bond yields steady

Friday October 2, 2026 5:00 pm

ECONOMYNEXT – Sri Lanka’s rupee closed at 330.55/65 to the US dollar in the spot market on Friday, from 330.60/70 the previous day, while bond yields closed broadly steady, dealers said.

A bond maturing on 01.08.2030 closed at 11.15/20 percent, up from 11.10/18 percent.

A bond maturing on 15.10.2030 closed flat at 11.20/25 percent.

A bond maturing on 01.02.2031 closed at 11.25/30 percent, up from 11.22/27 percent.

A bond maturing on 15.12.2032 closed at 11.67/75 percent, up from 11.65/75 percent.

A bond maturing on 15.10.2034 closed at 11.99/12.05 percent, up from 11.95/12.00 percent.

At the end of September, the rupee had depreciated by 6.3 percent against the US dollar on a year-to-date basis, the central bank said. (Colombo/Oct2/2026)

Tourism

Sri Lanka tourist arrivals drop 0.26-pct in September 2026

Friday October 2, 2026 4:51 pm

ECONOMYNEXT – Visitor numbers into Sri Lanka fell 0.26 percent in September 2026, compared to a year ago, official data showed.

Total arrivals in September were 158,557 compared to 158,971 in the same month last year.

India continued to be the top source with 51,931 visitors, making up a 32 percent of total arrivals.

There were 11,722 visitors from China and from 10,951 from Australia.

There have been 1,693,679 visitors to the island so far this year.

Tourist arrivals fell 3.3 percent in the month compared to last August.

Total arrivals during January-August 2026 fell 2 percent, compared to the corresponding period of 2025.

Tourism earnings were estimated at 264 million dollars in August, a 2.1 percent increase from a year earlier.

But total tourism earnings during January-August 2026 fell 10 percent to 2.1 billion dollars, compared to 2025.(Colombo/Oct2/2026)

Markets

Sri Lanka stocks close down 0.33-pct; banks lead turnover

Friday October 2, 2026 3:42 pm

ECONOMYNEXT – Sri Lanka’s Colombo Stock Exchange closed lower on Friday, CSE data showed, with the benchmark All Share Price Index falling 0.33 percent.

The ASPI was down 68.26 points at 20,812.64, while the more liquid S&P SL20 was down 0.25 percent, or 14.93 points, at 5,886.72.

Positive contributors to the ASPI were Citizens Development Business Finance (up 5.15 percent at 34.70 rupees), Richard Pieris and Company (up 2.31 percent at 26.60 rupees), PGP Glass Ceylon (up 1.63 percent at 56.10 rupees), and Sri Lanka Telecom (up 1.43 percent at 85.10 rupees).

Carson Cumberbatch (down 2.67 percent at 710.00 rupees), Singer (Sri Lanka) (down 3.05 percent at 76.20 rupees), SMB Finance (down 8.33 percent at 1.10 rupees), and Commercial Bank of Ceylon (down 0.49 percent at 202.00 rupees) were top negative contributors.

Market turnover was 873.38 million rupees. The S&P/CSE Banks sector led turnover with 244.40 million rupees, while Real Estate Management and Development recorded 177.44 million rupees.

“Trading started off extremely slowly before picking up slightly in the final hour, with crossings in Sampath Bank, LIOC, and NDB accounting for roughly 350 to 400 million rupees—almost half the day’s total turnover,” said Raynal Wickremeratne, Head of Research and Strategy at NDB Securities. (Colombo/Oct02/2026)

Arts and Culture

Sampath Bank debuts digital book finder at Sri Lanka book fair

Sampath Bank’s physical kiosk at the Colombo International Book Fair

Friday October 2, 2026 3:40 pm

ECONOMYNEXT – Sri Lanka lender Sampath Bank has launched a community-powered book search platform at the Colombo International Book Fair allowing visitors to find the books they are looking for across the fair’s 150+ stalls.

Sampath Book Finder, Sri Lanka’s first community-powered book discovery platform, also allows readers to recommended books they encounter by sharing the title, publisher, hall and stall number.

It turns “the collective knowledge of readers into a real-time digital solution, empowering them to find what they are looking for, discover something new and help others do the same,” Milinda Weerasinghe, Chief Marketing Officer, Sampath Bank PLC, said.

When a book proves difficult to locate, visitors can access bookfairtracker.com or scan the designated QR code and submit a request to the community, allowing readers who have already spotted the title to share its location and help others find it without having to search stall after stall.

SampathCards offers 25 percent cashback for Sampath GPay customers on their purchases and 3 months 0% instalment plans for book purchases at the fair.

The Colombo International Book Fair, organised by the Sri Lanka Book Publishers’ Association, continues at BMICH until 4 October, from 9 am to 9 pm daily. (Colombo/Oct2/2026)