Central Bank says tsunami’s negative impact may be mitigated by the reconstruction and rehabilitation activities

Sri Lanka’s Central Bank says the negative fall out from the tsunami will be mitigated by growth in reconstruction and rehabilitation, though the devastation has left the country with a US$ 1.













4 bn repair bill. Sri Lanka’s Central Bank says the negative fall out from the tsunami will be mitigated by growth in reconstruction and rehabilitation, though the devastation has left the country with a US$ 1.4 bn repair bill. The bank made its observations on Tuesday, following its monthly monetary policy review meeting, where it kept its overnight repurchase (repo) and reverse repurchase (reverse repo) rates at 7.





5 percent and 9.0 percent respectively.

Giant tidal waves, which killed over 30,000 people and left millions homeless, also left a trail of destruction down the southern and eastern coastal belts of the island.

The tourism and fisheries sector took a severe beating, which the bank says could marginally affect this year’s economic growth.

“However, a part of the negative impact may be mitigated by the reconstruction and rehabilitation activities in the affected areas,” the bank said.

The country’s import bill is expected to head north to feed emergency relief goods such as food and pharmaceu