Sri Lanka finance minister sacked, central bank governor calls it quits

Sri Lankan President Gotabaya Rajapaksa dropped his brother as finance minister on Monday after disbanding the government and calling for a unity administration, as protests over the country's economic crisis focused on the role of the ruling family.

The debt-laden country, run by Rajapaksa and several members of his family since 2019, is struggling to pay for imports of fuel and other goods due to a scarcity of foreign exchange, leading to hours-long power cuts and a shortage of essentials.

Police used tear gas to disperse hundreds of protesters who gathered outside Prime Minister Mahinda Rajapaksa's private residence in Tangalle, in southern Sri Lanka. Mahinda, the president's elder brother, was away in the country's commercial capital Colombo at the time.

“Protesters broke through two barricades that had been placed near the residence and police had to use tear gas to move the protesters away,” police spokesperson Nihal Thalduwa said.

After many protesters demanded the total ouster of the Rajapaksas, the president's media office said in a statement four new ministers had been appointed “to ensure parliament and other tasks can be conducted in a lawful manner until a full Cabinet can be sworn in.”

The president's nephew resigned as sports minister in the government that was disbanded while the central bank governor offered to quit. The central bank delayed its monetary policy announcement scheduled for Tuesday.

The media office said Justice Minister Ali Sabry was named finance minister, replacing Basil Rajapaksa, who was due to visit Washington this month for talks with the International Monetary Fund (IMF) on a loan programme.

Ministers of foreign affairs, education and highways will keep their positions.

“The president invites all political parties representing in the parliament to come together to accept ministerial portfolios in order to find solutions to this national crisis,” the media office said.

The largest opposition party rejected an invitation from the president on Monday to form a unity government, as protests continued throughout the country.

Shares extend losses; index 2.68% lower

Sri Lanka shares slumped for a sixth straight session on Monday.

The CSE All-Share index settled 2.68 per cent lower at 8,244.55 points.

Sri Lanka's Colombo Stock Exchange on Monday said it has halted trading of shares for 30 minutes due to a sharp fall in the benchmark index.

“Please note that the Market has been halted for 30 minutes due to the S&P SL20 index dropping over 5 per cent from the previous close,”e the bourse said on its website. 

The boom in Sri Lanka’s stocks has turned to bust as a 33 per cent slide renders the market the world’s worst performer this year. Equities have been hit, with losses triggerring trading suspensions in recent days. AGENCIES