Sri Lanka says will default on all external debt to pay for food

All outstanding payments to bond holders, bilateral creditors and institutional lenders will be suspended until a debt restructure, Lanka's finance ministry said

Sri Lanka warned of an unprecedented default and halted payments on foreign debt, an extraordinary step taken to preserve its dwindling dollar stockpile for essential food and fuel imports.
 
All outstanding payments to bond holders, bilateral creditors and institutional lenders will be suspended until a debt restructure, the finance ministry said in a statement on Tuesday. The newly appointed central bank governor, Nandalal Weerasinghe, said in a briefing that authorities are seeking to negotiate with creditors and warning of a possible default.
 
The measures are “a last resort in order to prevent a further deterioration of the Republic’s