May 03 (Citizen News) - It has been reported that Sri Lanka’s fuel import expenditure has also increased significantly in comparison to the increase in fuel prices in the world market due to the war situation in the Middle East.
According to figures from the Treasury and the Ceylon Lanka Petroleum Corporation (CPC), fuel import expenditure has increased to US$ 630 million in March. The Central Bank of Sri Lanka (CBSL) statistics reveal that fuel import expenditure has increased significantly due to the increase in fuel prices and import volumes due to the war in the Middle East by 74.7 percent. Reflecting the high growth in imports relative to exports, the trade account deficit has widened in March 2026. The CBSL further stated that it has widened to US$ 2.3 billion in the first quarter of last year (2025) compared to the US$ 1.5 billion trade account deficit recorded in the first quarter of 2026.
Meanwhile economic experts point out that a more effective long-term solution to keep fuel import costs to a minimum is to focus more on renewable energy sources. Accordingly, encouraging the use of electric or hybrid vehicles for goods and passenger transport is also an effective solution. Besides, the government has announced that it hopes to introduce electric trains next year, and this is also a very good step taken to minimize fuel import costs.
