July 23, Colombo (LNW): Sri Lanka’s inflation rate increased to 2.4 per cent in June, up from 1.6 per cent in May, as per the national consumer price index, leading to higher spending on transport, alcoholic beverages, and tobacco.
Inflation in the transport sector rose from 6.9 per cent to 7.5 per cent, while the hotel and restaurant sector saw a decrease from 4.9 per cent to 4.3 per cent.
In the category of alcoholic beverages and tobacco, inflation climbed from 26.6 per cent to 27.1 per cent.
Food inflation jumped from 0.5 per cent in May to 1.9 per cent in June, while non-food inflation increased from 2.4 per cent to 2.7 per cent.
However, the costs of water, electricity, and gas declined during this period.