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Monday, November 2 2026
Monday, November 2 2026
MONETABRIEF – Sri Lankans have spent 937 million US dollars travelling abroad up to September 2026, with the spend on the month rising to 122 million dollars from 111 a month earlier.
Sri Lanka's tourist receipts up to September were estimated at 2,245 million dollars, using a survey.
Sri Lankans became deeply impoverished as the rupee collapsed in 2022, as the central bank tried to float the rupee without removing a surrender rule, after printing money to cut rates in earlier months.
Foreign travel spend has gradually recovered as incomes also recovered amid low inflation brought about by exchange rate stability up to mid 2025.
When people choose to spend their earnings on a foreign holiday (a service) they will have to forego imports or other domestic services.
If it is business travel, dividends to shareholders will reduce.
If people dip into savings, banks will have to reduce investment spending by the same amount, reducing imports.
As a result, travel abroad will tend to reduce imports and the trade deficit, by reducing money left to consume hard goods, as does debt repayment or dividend payments to foreign capital as long as money is not printed.
Total merchandise import up to September 2026 was 18.6 billion US dollars.
In January 2026, travel abroad spend was reported as 133.4 million dollars, higher than September.
In January the central bank bought 200 million dollars from the market as cyclone Ditwah killed credit, preventing appreciation above 309 to the US dollar.
The travel abroad number hit a high of 137 million dollars in February and the central bank bought 461 million dollars with newly created money, monetizing the balance of payments surplus and inflating reserve money.
However, after March the central bank dishonored the notes it had created in monetizing the inflowing dollars as oil demand went up and travel abroad collapsed.
Macro-economists busted the rupee to 330 levels and pushed up the cost of living and turned the public against a democratically elected government. Inflation hit 8.3 percent up to September and macro-economists busted the rupee.
Macro-economists have suggested that people who are impoverished by the inflation target should be given more subsidies. (Colombo/Nov01/2026)
| 3 month bill | 9.26% | 1bp ▲ |
| 12-m bill | 9.95% | 2bp - |
| Gold (Ounce) | $4015 | - ▼ |
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