The Monetary Board of the Central Bank of Sri Lanka, at its meeting held on 10 October 2019, decided to maintain the Standing Deposit Facility Rate (SDFR) and the Standing Lending Facility Rate (SLFR) of the Central Bank at their current levels of 7.00 per cent and 8.00 per cent, respectively. The Board arrived at this decision following a careful analysis of current and expected developments in the domestic economy and the financial market as well as the global economy. The decision of the Monetary Board is consistent with the aim of maintaining inflation in the desired 4-6 per cent range while supporting economic growth to reach its potential over the medium term.

The Central Bank of Sri Lanka hosted the South East Asian Central Banks (SEACEN) - Bank for International Settlements (BIS) High-Level Seminar and the 18th Meeting of the SEACEN Executive Committee, in Colombo, from 26 to 28 September 2019. These events were attended by the Governor of the Central Bank of Sri Lanka, Deputy Governors and delegates of SEACEN member central banks and monetary authorities and distinguished speakers. 

The trade deficit widened in July 2019 as exports fell more than the decline in imports. Export earnings recorded a decline of 7.0 per cent (year-on-year) after a steady growth for several months while import expenditure declined by 2.2 per cent (year-on-year) in July 2019.

The decline in export earnings in July 2019 can be largely attributed to a reduction in earnings from petroleum products due to lower prices of bunker fuel and the export of a naval craft in July 2018, which resulted in a higher export base in the corresponding month of the previous year.

The trade deficit widened to US dollars 717 million in July 2019 compared to the deficit of US dollars 316 million recorded in June 2019.

Tourist arrivals observed a notable recovery from the impact of the Easter Sunday attacks recording an increase of 83.4 per cent in July 2019 over the preceding month.

Western province continued to account for the largest share as per the Provincial Gross Domestic Product (PGDP)  estimated by the Statistics Department of the Central Bank of Sri Lanka (CBSL) for 2018. Central and North Western provinces were the second and the third highest contributors, respectively.

The highest increase in PGDP share on year-on-year basis was reported in Western province. The only other province that reported an increase was North Central province. The shares of Central, Sabaragamuwa and Uva provinces decreased in 2018, while the shares of North Western, Southern, Eastern and Northern provinces remained unchanged.