Sri Lanka current account deficit widens to $149mn in June
Sri Lanka’s monthly current account recorded a deficit of 149 million dollars in June 2026, the central bank said, as the external sector continued to be impacted by developments in West Asia.
This marks the third consecutive monthly deficit.
The cumulative deficit for the first half of 2026 was 245 million dollars compared to the surplus recorded in the corresponding period of 2025.
“The merchandise trade deficit widened on a year-on-year basis in June 2026, as the increase in import expenditure outpaced the growth in export earnings,” CBSL said.
The trade deficit widened to 5.5 billion dollars during the first half of 2026, compared to 3.3 billion dollars in the corresponding period of 2025.
The spend on fuel imports increased by 40.2 percent, year-on-year, in June 2026.
Fuel imports amounted to 3,168 million dollars during the first half of 2026, an increase of 58.8 percent year-on-year compared to the same period of 2025.
Spending on motor vehicle imports fell 27.1 percent, month-on-month, to 182 million dollars in June 2026.
Expenditure on motor vehicle imports dropped to 1,254 million dollars in the first half of 2026, from 1,572 million dollars in the second half of 2025.
“The terms of trade deteriorated on a year-on-year basis in June 2026, as import prices increased at a faster pace than export prices.”
“Similarly, the terms of trade during the first half of 2026 deteriorated compared to the corresponding period of 2025.”
The services account surplus fell 33.8 percent from a year earlier to 162 million dollars in June 2026, as services outflows grew faster than services inflows.
Tourist arrivals fell 9.9 percent, year-on-year, in June 2026, with total arrivals during the first half of 2026 dropping to 1,146,573 compared to 1,168,044 arrivals in the first half of 2025.
Estimated tourism earnings fell 10.8 percent from a year earlier to 151 million dollars in June 2026.
Tourism earnings during the first half of 2026 declined by 11.8 percent to 1,511 million dollars compared to the corresponding period of 2025.
Workers’ remittances rose 9.3 percent year-on-year to 695 million dollars in June 2026.
Remittance inflows during the first half of 2026 increased by 23.2 percent, year-on-year to 4.6 billion dollars.
Foreign investment in the government securities market recorded a net inflow of 30.2 million dollars.
Foreign investment in the Colombo Stock Exchange recorded a net outflow of 0.4 million dollars in June 2026.
Gross official reserves were recorded at 6.5 billion dollars by end June 2026.
By end July 2026, the Sri Lanka rupee depreciated by 7.8 percent against the US dollar on a year-to-date basis.
