10th Parliament· 154 sittings on record · 30,475 speeches · latest 10 June 2026

The Hon. Ravi Karunanayake

New Democratic Front· National List· 24 September 2025 ·Oral question: Questions under Standing Order 27(2): Executive Presidency and SVAT

Public Finance
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Hon. Ravi Karunanayake questioned how the Government intends to bridge the gap between projected reserves of about US$6.7 billion, including expected IMF and ADB inflows, and the US$7.2 billion target. He warned that uncertainty could affect macro-linked bondholder decisions and pressure the rupee, noting the fiscal impact of exchange rate depreciation and interest rate changes. He urged action to prevent bureaucratic delays from constraining the economy.

Verbatim record (translated)

Machine-translated from Sinhala / Tamil / English

¶ 01 Hon. Minister, with Net Reserves at US$6.186 billion, the IMF fifth tranche of US$330 million and an ADB funding of US$190 million would bring us to roughly US$6.7 billion. What about the balance to reach US$7.2 billion? Otherwise, macro‑linked bondholders will decide to move out or in, impacting the rupee. Every 1 percent depreciation of the rupee impacts Government expenditure by Rs. 46 billion; every 1 percent interest rate change impacts the economy by Rs. 160 billion. Together, let us ensure the economy is not stymied by bureaucracy.

Provenance

Source
Hansard, Wednesday, 24 September 2025 ·No. 1759815459006615 ·English daily/uncorrected Hansard
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Permalink
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Cite as: The Hon. Ravi Karunanayake. 10th Parliament, Parliament of Sri Lanka. Hansard, 24 September 2025. No. 1759815459006615. Politick, https://staging.politick.io/lk/speeches/20814