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Sri Lanka Inflation Hits a Record 39% as Shortages Persist

  • Food inflation rose 57.4% in May, non-food climbed 30.6%
  • Sri Lanka is seeking emergency aid to ease shortages
Shoppers at a grains stall at the Narahenpita Economic Centre in Colombo, Sri Lanka.

Shoppers at a grains stall at the Narahenpita Economic Centre in Colombo, Sri Lanka.

Photographer: Jonathan Wijayaratne/Bloomberg
Updated on

Sri Lanka’s headline inflation surged to a record in May amid continuing food and fuel shortages as the country struggles to lift itself out of its worst economic crisis.

Consumer prices in the capital Colombo rose 39.1% from a year ago, the Department of Census and Statistics said in a statement Tuesday. That’s faster than the median 35% climb forecast by economists in a Bloomberg survey and is the highest level on record.