Press briefing of Cabinet Decision taken on 2018-05-09

Presentation in Parliament of the Annual Report of the Central Bank of Sri Lanka for the Year 2017

The Annual Report of the Central Bank of Sri Lanka (CBSL) is formulated in accordance with the provisions contained in the Monetary Law Act incorporating the information on the economic status of Sri Lanka, the status of the CBSL and the monetary policies and measures adopted by the Monetary Board within the year. According to the 2017 Annual Report of the Central Bank, even though the economic growth has reduced up to 3.1% in the year 2017 in the midst of adverse climatic conditions and the other effects caused in that regard, the unemployment ratio has further declined up to 4.2%. Sri Lanka has succeeded in reporting a surplus in the overall Balance of Payments (BoP) amounting to US$ 2.1 billion in the year 2017 and the Gross Official Foreign Reserves have increased up to US$ 8 billion. The increase of the Tax revenue of the Government as a percentage of the Gross Domestic Product (GDP) is a considerable victory. By the year 2017, the per capita income of the country has reached US$ 4,065. The Annual Report of the CBSL for the year 2017 has pointed out the importance of formulating policies aiming at the progress of the general public and the sustainable implementation of the reforms with a long term vision, in achieving the economic and development challenges of the country. As such, Hon. Mangala Samaraweera, the Minister of Finance and Mass Media submitted the Report to the Cabinet and the same was approved by the Cabinet for its presentation in Parliament.