SRI LANKA NEWS IN BRIEF (JANUARY 2019) – Compiled by Victor Melder                                              Foreign reserves had declined by USD 1 billion within the 51-day political crisis completely upsetting the debt management plans of the country, Prime Minister Ranil Wickremesinghe said, yesterday, making a ministerial statement in Parliament. The PM said he was confident of overcoming all the challenges in the economic front and the government would present a “people-friendly budget”. Wickremesinghe remained focused on stabilising the rupee. “The rupee depreciated by 3.8 percent within the 51 days of the crisis while other currencies gained value. From October 26 to December 16, 2018, USD 312.9 million in Treasury Guarantees, USD 29.1 million in Treasury Bills and USD 29.8 million in Treasury Bonds flowed out of the country. We previously had ...

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