The Colombo Consumer Price Index (CCPI), with a base year of 2021=100, reported a year-on-year headline inflation rate of 2.1% for December 2025, maintaining the same level as the previous month. This stability in the inflation rate is largely attributed to a favorable statistical base effect, even amidst a significant month-on-month price increase caused by Cyclone Ditwah.
Food inflation, on a year-on-year basis, remained steady at 3.0% in December 2025, mirroring the rate from the previous month. In contrast, Non-Food inflation showed a slight rise, moving to 1.8% in December 2025 from 1.7% in November.
On a month-to-month comparison, the CCPI saw a marked increase of 1.26% in December 2025. The Food category was the primary driver of this rise, contributing 1.25 percentage points due to supply-side disruptions from the adverse weather conditions. The Non-Food category, however, had a minimal impact, adding just 0.01 percentage points.
Core inflation, which provides insight into the fundamental inflation trends within the economy, increased to 2.7% year-on-year in December 2025, up from 2.4% in November 2025.
Inflation forecasts presented at the November 2025 monetary policy round project a gradual acceleration towards the target rate of 5% in the coming period, supported by suitable policy measures.
The CCPI is compiled by the Department of Census and Statistics (DCS) to reflect average changes in the prices of goods and services purchased by households in urban areas of the Colombo district.
