President to look into possibility of providing a moratorium on loans

President Ranil Wickremesinghe said yesterday he would look into the possibility of a moratorium on loans to protect businesses.Addressing an event, organised by the Women’s Chamber of Industry and Commerce (WCIC), the President said the Governor of the Central Bank had been asked to look into the matter, while protecting the financial institutions.

“This is the hardest work we have to do. We cannot live like this forever. Even if we live with hardships, we must move forward quickly. The current inflation is a problem that every business has to face. If we continue with these decisions, we can reduce inflation. Bank interest can be reduced. If decisions cannot be made, inflation will increase,” the President said.

President Wickremesinghe said they are currently trying to secure IMF assistance and that the countries that have given Sri Lanka loans have already stated their willingness to assist us.

“Japan and the Paris Club, two of our three major creditors, have expressed their willingness to assist. We have already begun talks with India and China. According to the discussions with China Exim Bank recently, we’re currently debating on how to restructure our debt. The Chinese side has agreed to move quickly,” he said.

President Wickremesinghe said India’s Foreign Minister will arrive in Sri Lanka next week. . The government will receive close to three billion from the IMF.

“After that, we can get nearly 5 billion dollars from the World Bank and the Asian Development Bank. The total will be $7.5 billion. Adding the $3 billion from the restructuring of unprofitable government agencies can add up to $10 billion, which will enable the economy to recover and bring the country out of this suffering,” he said.