Sri Lanka down to last day of petrol stock: PM tells crisis-hit nation

On Monday, Ranil Wickremesinghe called for patience, saying the economic crisis would get worse in coming months

Sri Lanka's new prime minister said on Monday the crisis-hit nation was down to its last day of petrol, as the country's power minister told citizens not to join the lengthy fuel queues that have galvanised weeks of anti-government protests.

Ranil Wickremesinghe, appointed prime minister on Thursday, said in an address to the nation the country urgently needed $75 million in foreign exchange to pay for essential imports.

"At the moment, we only have petrol stocks for a single day. The next couple of months will be the most difficult ones of our lives," he said.

"We must prepare ourselves to make some