COLOMBO, July 6, 2023 (BSS/AFP) - Cash-strapped Sri Lanka cut interest rates on Thursday, a week after announcing a major debt restructuring in line with an IMF bailout following an unprecedented economic crisis last year. The Central Bank of Sri Lanka slashed the benchmark lending rate by two percentage points to 12 percent, after unveiling the overhaul that involved a 30 percent haircut for foreign bond holders. It cut rates 2.5 percentage points in June. Last year, Sri Lanka ran out of cash to pay for even the most essential imports, leading to shortages of food, fuel and medicines. Then-president Gotabaya Rajapaksa, who faced allegations of mismanagement, was forced to flee the country and resign in July 2022 after months of protests.

Source: Bangladesh Sangbad Sangstha July 06, 2023 08:09 UTC