India has agreed to increase a further USD 500 million credit score line to assist Sri Lanka import gas, Finance Minister Ali Sabry stated, amid delays in chalking out a bailout bundle with the IMF to mitigate the dire monetary disaster going through the island nation.
Sri Lanka has been struggling to pay for imports after its international trade reserves plummeted sharply in current instances, inflicting a devaluation of its foreign money and spiralling inflation.
“India has agreed to provide an additional USD 500 million for our fuel imports,” Sabry stated on Friday, whereas including that he was hopeful that New Delhi would contemplate handing out one other USD 1 billion {dollars} as a credit score line. India has already agreed to defer USD 1.5 billion in import funds that Sri Lanka must make to the Asian Clearing Union.
On Friday, New Delhi has additionally prolonged the tenure of a USD 400 million swap given in January this yr, the Indian High Commission stated. Sabry is at present in Washington to barter a programme with the International Monetary Fund (IMF). The finance minister stated that talks have begun on an Extended Fund Facility, however the finer particulars of the programme are but to be finalised.
Sri Lanka wants a minimum of USD 4 billion to tide over its mounting financial woes, and Sabry has been holding talks with worldwide establishments such because the World Bank in addition to international locations like China and Japan for monetary help.
“It will be a difficult period in the next nine months. During that time there is a need to bring in more investments in US dollars into the central bank. We are talking with several countries. If these efforts are successful, and if investment of about USD 2 billion comes to the central bank, it will help stop the depreciation and stabilise the rupee,” Sabry stated. On April 12, Sri Lanka suspended its debt servicing for the primary time in its historical past.
Last week, the Sri Lankan authorities stated it might quickly default on USD 35.5 billion in international debt because the pandemic and the struggle in Ukraine made it unimaginable to make funds to abroad collectors. Sri Lanka has been witnessing mass anti-government protests in current weeks because it suffers meals shortages, hovering gas costs and main energy cuts as a result of unprecedented monetary disaster.
Source: www.financialexpress.com”