INSUBCONTINENT EXCLUSIVE:
exchange crisis.While the 5.3% expansion in January-March marked an increase from the previous three months and was a huge improvement on
the 10.7% contraction in the same quarter last year, the industrial sector has also indicated a sharp recovery with an expansion of 11.8% in
the first quarter, according to State Minister of Finance Ranjith Siyambalapitiya.Siyambalapitiya said as a country with a negative economy
of less than 12% recorded in the last quarter of 2022, the people who look at this situation with a positive eye will observe the economic
journey of Sri Lanka with hope.Furthermore, the State Minister said the overall annual growth in 2024 will be around 2.2%, as per the
International Monetary Fund (IMF) which has, however, indicated that the country should proceed with caution.Meanwhile, the construction
sector also showed improvement, as inflation came off a peak of 70% in September 2022 to 0.9% in May 2024.Last week, the IMF released USD
336 million as part of a four-year USD 2.9 billion bailout for Sri Lanka, which defaulted on its USD 46 billion foreign debt in April
assuming successful debt restructuring negotiations and the implementation of structural reforms, which would offset the adverse impact of
planned fiscal consolidation on growth.--With agencies inputs
