Crisis-hit Sri Lankan economy rebounds as tourists return

Colombo: Sri Lanka s economy rebounded strongly in the fourth quarter of 2023 from the island nation s unprecedented financial crisis as tourism arriv...

Colombo: Sri Lanka's economy rebounded strongly in the fourth quarter of 2023 from the island nation's unprecedented financial crisis as tourism arrivals rose, the government said Saturday.

Agriculture, industries and services boosted the expansion to 4.5 percent in the December quarter compared to a 12.4 percent contraction a year earlier, the census and statistics department said.

It added however that the economy shrank by 2.4 percent overall during 2023 compared to a contraction of 7.8 percent in 2022, when the country defaulted on its $46 billion foreign debt.

"Sri Lanka's economy experienced some kind of duality in 2023," the department said in a statement, noting that the first half of the year recorded negative growth while the economy bounced back in the second.

"The long-awaited boom in tourism came towards the end of the year," the department said, adding that worker remittances too had improved.