The Colombo Magistrate Court today (23) issued warrants for the arrest of activist Pathum Kerner, a prominent figure of the people’s struggle against the government.

The Court issued the order as the activist failed to appear in Court regarding the case filed by the Colombo Crimes Division (CCD) involving a series of incidents at the Polduwa intersection.

Kerner, who is accused of assembling people to the Polduwa Junction near Parliament, was arrested and remanded in connection with the anti-government riots on July 13 and later granted bail.

MIAP

Four more people accused of involvement in May 09 tensions were arrested by the Police yesterday (22).

Among the arrestees were a person accused of breaking into a business venue belonging to MP Johnston Fernando and stealing property valued over Rs. 2.4 million, a 22 year-old resident of Panliyadda accused of setting MP Sumith Udukumbura’s house on fire, a 33-year old resident of Kaduwela accused of damaging property and the residence of MP Premnath C Dolawatta, and a 26 year-old resident of Kollupitiya accused of assaulting an Ambalangoda SLPP Pradeshiya Sabha Member and throwing him into the Beira Lake.

MIAP

Sri Lanka’s nation-wide inflation galloped 66.7 percent in the 12 – months to July 2022, the state statistics office said, amid the worst currency triggered by the islands intermediate regime Central Bank.

Central Bank Governor Nandalal Weerasinghe recently said that the bank is optimistic that inflation will be around 60-65 in the comming months and it will go up to 70 percent in September in aacordance with their projections .

But the Deartment of Census and Statistics announced that Sri Lanka’s nationwide inflation in July 2022 determined under the National Consumer Price Index (NCPI) rose to 66.7 percent from 58.9 percent recorded in May 2022 on a year-on-year basis.

CB Governor is trying to mislead the masses and international financial agencies including the International Monetary Fund (IMF) announcing the shrinked data of inflation . The inflation targeting is the responsibilty of the Central Bank

The NCPI for all items for the month of July 2022 increased to 244.4 from 231.5 in the previous month.With respect to July 2021, the reported inflation for the month of July 2022 was mainly due to the higher price levels prevailed in both food and non-food groups.

Accordingly, the Year-on-Year inflation of the food group increased to 82.5 percent in July 2022 from 75.8 percent in May 2022 and the Year-on-Year inflation of the non-food group increased to 52.4 percent in July 2022 from 43.6 percent in previous month.

Contributions to the inflation rate of July 2022 from food group and non-food group are 39.28 percent and 27.44 percent respectively.

The moving average inflation for the month of July 2022 is 25.9 percent. The corresponding rate for the month of June 2022 was 20.8 percent.

Sri Lanka has a reserves collecting soft-peg but under ‘flexible’ inflation targeting it was bombarded with liquidity injection until in collapsed repeatedly and eventually the country ended up in default.

The Central Bank in April allowed interest rates to go up and private credit has collapsed and inflation especially from traded goods and food is starting to ease. However services prices tend to go up for a longer period.

Former President Gotabaya Rajapska will return to Sri Lanka very soon, said Secretary General of the Sri Lanka Podujana Peramuna (SLPP) Sagara Kariyawasam, speaking to a briefing yesterday (22).

The Ruling Party Secretary General revealed that he urged President Ranil Wickremesinghe to provide security and other facilities required by the former President and that the President positively responded.

Whether Mr. Rajapaksa should return to politics should be his own decision as he has every right in that regard, Kariyawasam added.

MIAP

Sri Lanka is definitely to face a severe shortage of essential food items by the end of next month following the ban on open account transactions by the Central Bank pushing importers out of business, essential commodity importers warned.

They noted that if there is shortage of essential food and unbearable price hike in the country then CB Governor Nadalal Weerasinghe should bear the responsibility as the Trade Ministry is against arbetary decision.

The government on the recommendation of the CB banned open account-based imports in May. However, the ban was relaxed to allow importation of 10 essential goods under open account payment terms in June.

The Minister of Trade and Food Security Nalin Fernando noted that relaxation of the open account trade has played a role in the decline of prices of essential goods in the market. However, Weerasinghe refuted these claims.

Sri Lanka has avoided a food shortage from July to mid-August following a decision to relax open account imports for 10 essential foods, in conjunction with a fuel distribution scheme for local suppliers and traders, Trade Minister Nalin Fernando said.

“The Ministry took great pains in getting the monetary authority to re allow the import of 10 essential items but the reimposition of the ban will definitely create food shortages in the country,” trade ministry sources said.

. Following the relaxation of import restrictions on essential food items and lifting the ban on open account transactions the Trade ministrty has been able to meet essential food commodity needs without shortages, and also to reduce prices through competition,” said MinisterFernando.

Open account imports for 10 essential items are permitted earlier, making importers bring down rice, wheat flour, sugar, potatoes, red dhal (lentils), onions, dry chillies, dry fish, beans and milk powder.

If there are any shortages in these commodities in the coming months, the Central Bank Governor should answer to the consumers as the ministry cannot take the responsibility, a senior official said.

Open account imports allow food to be cleared on suppliers’ credit which can be settled later through official or unofficial means. Sri Lanka, banned open accounts in May in an attempt to reduce Unidyal style net settlements being made for what officials called ‘non-essential’ imports.

However, the ban also hit food imports, which are usually imported long term relationships on suppliers credit. It is estimated that the island needs about 150 to 250 million US dollars a month for food imports according to industry officials.

A senior member of the Essential food commodity importers association who did not wish to be named said that he will be forced to close down his business and ask employees to leave if he cannot import through any other method.

He claimed that most of the importers and traders in Pettah have enough stocks for only one month due to storage problems.

“When the dollar rate was at Rs. 203, we purchased it at Rs. 300, and now it’s over Rs. 400, but not all sellers have enough dollars in one place,” another importer said.

He adding that they are spending large amounts on buying dollars at a higher price and selling products at a lowered margin, sometimes at a loss, only because they want to continue doing business and provide food for people.

. Further, he said that although he and many other essential food item importers in Pettah have submitted applications to obtain dollars from the credit line provided by India for essential imports, there has not been a response from the authorities for two months