Sri Lanka forex revenue from tourism falls 8.2pc in August

Colombo : Sri Lanka's foreign exchange revenue from tourism in August 2025 fell 8.2 percent from a year ago to USD 258.9 million, the central bank said, quoting tourism promotion authority data.

The revenue from tourism, which accounts for nearly 3 percent of the island nation's economy, fell for the second straight month, despite an increase in the monthly tourist arrivals in both months, the data showed.

In July, the revenue fell 3 percent to USD 318.5 million compared to the same month in the previous year's USD 328.3 million.

The tourist arrivals saw a jump of 20.4 percent to 198,235 in August and a rise of 6.6 percent to 200,244 in July, the official data showed.

However, the revenue for the first eight months up to end-August has seen a rise of 5.7 percent to USD 2.29 billion from a year ago.

Sri Lanka's new government has aimed at an ambitious USD 5 billion revenue and a 3 million arrival target this year.

The island nation witnessed USD 3.17 billion revenue in 2024, with a 53.2 percent jump compared to USD 2.07 billion in the previous year, the data showed.

The arrivals jumped 38.1 percent to 2.05 million in 2024 compared to the previous year.