Categories: Economy

Tourism gets hit in Sri Lanka as hotels & restaurants shut down due to shortage of cooking gas

<p>
<strong>An acute shortage of cooking gas has hit Sri Lanka’s hospitality sector. The shortage of this essential item has forced many hoteliers and restaurant owners in the island nation to shut down. For Sri Lanka this could deal a big blow as the tourism sector plays a key role in its economy.</strong></p>
<p>
As the economic crisis deepens, ICRA Lanka said imports of essential items including fuel, gas and even milk powder are thinning. The island nation’s foreign exchange reserves have fallen to record lows and are merely adequate to support imports for one month.</p>
<p>
The <a href="https://www.dailymirror.lk/business-news/ICRA-Lanka-urges-government-to-seek-IMF-assistance-to-prevent-hard-landing-of-economy/273-227250">Daily Mirror</a> in a report said that the “shortage in cooking gas is so acute that canteens, restaurants and other food outlets are forced to close doors to their patrons while the milk powder shortage has prompted certain small grocers in the city and the outskirts to stock pile 450 gram packs and sell them in small quantities of 50 grams and 100 grams to people around them at prices which are higher than their prorated retail price, providing an oasis to <a href="https://www.indianarrative.com/economy-news/india-looking-at-currency-swap-option-to-help-exporters-as-sri-lanka-plunges-into-forex-crisis-137160.html">enrich</a> the traders.“</p>
<p>
<strong>Also read: India looking at currency swap option to help exporters as Sri Lanka plunges into forex crisis</strong></p>
<p>
“There is uncertainty and gloom all around the hoteliers and restaurant owners are feeling the pinch more as this is the time for them to generate additional revenue,” a foreigner who is currently in Sri Lanka told India Narrative.</p>
<p>
Sri Lanka’s inflation has already breached the double-digit mark in November pushing up food prices like never before. In November, Sri Lanka’s inflation rate was 11.1 per cent.</p>
<p>
Rating agency ICRA Lanka said that “people are forced to eat less on soaring food prices as high as 20 per cent,” Daily Mirror noted.</p>
<p>
The pain is not likely to end very soon for Sri Lanka though Colombo is trying to do all that it can to attract tourists. The next year — 2022 is likely to be marked as ‘Visit Sri Lanka Year’.</p>
<div>
Even as the government took a host of measures including curbs on imports and incentivizing citizens residing abroad to send remittances, the situation has not improved. In fact ICRA Lanka has also prescribed seeking a loan from the International Monetary Fund. </div>
<p>
 </p>

Mahua Venkatesh

Mahua Venkatesh specialises in covering economic trends related to India and the world along with developments in South Asia.

Recent Posts

“Iran launched over 450 ballistic missiles and hundreds of UAVs in last 6 days,” Israel Defence Spox says

Israel Defence Forces Spokesperson Brigadier General Effie Defrin on Thursday said that Iran has expressed…

10 hours ago

French company Safran ties up with HAL to produce LEAP engines’ forged parts

India's Hindustan Aeronautics Limited (HAL) and French engine manufacturer, Safran Aircraft Engines, signed an agreement…

12 hours ago

India records highest growth in power generation after US & China in last five years: IEA

India has emerged as a country with the third-largest growth in power generation capacity globally…

13 hours ago

PM Modi lauds Grandmaster Divya Deshmukh for defeating world number one in World Team Blitz Championships

Prime Minister Narendra Modi hailed Indian chess grandmaster Divya Deshmukh for defeating world number one…

13 hours ago

Pakistan: Mahrang Baloch’s sister accuses prison authorities of harassing them during jail visit

The family of detained Baloch leader Mahrang Baloch has accused prison authorities at Quetta's Hudda…

13 hours ago

“Great news for education sector”: PM Modi hails India’s 2026 QS World University Rankings

The QS World University 2026 Rankings bring great news for our education sector, as the…

14 hours ago