Sri Lanka’s tourism earnings and official reserves both weakened in the first half of 2026, according to the latest Central Bank of Sri Lanka (CBSL) data, even as inbound worker remittances stayed far ahead of last year’s pace.
Tourism revenue for January to June 2026 totalled US$1,511.1 million, down from US$1,712.6 million in the same period of 2025. The monthly figure also eased, with June earnings of US$151.1 million falling below both the US$155.7 million recorded in May and the US$169.5 million earned in June 2025.
Worker remittances told a mixed story. Inflows dropped from US$847 million in May to US$695 million in June, a month-on-month fall of US$152 million. But over the full half-year, remittances reached US$4,604.8 million — well above the US$3,738 million received in the first six months of 2025, an increase of nearly US$867 million.
The Central Bank’s foreign reserves, meanwhile, fell 6.2% to US$6,450 million by the end of June, down from US$6,873 million a month earlier, EconomyNext reported. The CBSL managed to buy just US$70.5 million on a net basis during June, bringing its net purchases for the first half to US$556.4 million — a sharp slowdown from the US$2 billion bought across all of 2025.
The rupee came under heavy downward pressure in May as the fuel import bill rose on the back of Middle East escalation and demand for dollars to import vehicles climbed. The CBSL raised its Overnight Policy Rate that month in response. The reserve decline, coming ahead of sovereign bond repayments due from April 2028, could complicate compliance with the reserve targets Sri Lanka agreed under its IMF Extended Fund Facility.
The figures follow May’s reserve build to US$6,873 million and the US$847 million in remittances recorded that month.
