Sri Lanka's headline inflation dips in April

COLOMBO (News1st): Sri Lanka's headline inflation declined slightly in April due to the statistical effect of the high base and the decline in festival demand for non-food items due to the lockdown style curfew, the central bank said on Thursday. The monetary authority, in a statement, observed that headline inflation as measured by the Colombo Consumer Price Index (CCPI) declined to 5.2 percent in April from 5.4 percent in March. "Monthly change of CCPI recorded at 0.1 per cent was due to price increases observed in the items of the food category," the central bank noted. The CCPI measured on an annual average basis increased marginally to 4.8 percent in April from 4.7 percent in March. Food inflation increased to 13.2 per cent from 12.8 percent recorded in March, while non-food inflation declined to 2.1 per cent from 2.5 per cent recorded during the previous month. The central bank observed that prices of coconut, condiments, and coconut oil had climbed, while the reduction in prices of goods such as rice, dhal, big onion and canned fish, had moderated the price increases in the food category. Prices of non-food items which usually exhibit price hikes in April due to seasonal demand, however, remained unchanged as a result of the lockdown style curfew in the country, according to the central bank. The statement added that although core inflation which reflects the underlying inflation in the economy, increased to 3.1 per cent in April from 2.9 per cent in March, the annual average core inflation declined to 4.7 percent.