Sri Lanka’s Colombo Consumer Price Index (CCPI) based headline inflation, measured year-on-year, saw an increase in January 2026 after maintaining the same level for three consecutive months, according to the central bank.

“Headline inflation (Y-o-Y) was recorded at 2.3% in January 2026 compared to 2.1% in December 2025, broadly in line with the Central Bank’s near-term projections,” stated the Central Bank of Sri Lanka (CBSL).

The Colombo Consumer Price Index, a key indicator, rose by 0.6 percent in January, reaching 197.0 points, up from 195.8 points in the previous month.

Year-on-year food inflation increased to 3.3 percent in January, up from 3.0 percent in December. Meanwhile, non-food inflation remained steady at 1.8 percent in January.

“On a month-on-month basis, the CCPI recorded an increase of 0.59% in January 2026. The Food category contributed 0.21 percentage points to this increase, while the Non-Food category contributed 0.39 percentage points,” the central bank reported.

Core inflation decreased to 2.3 percent in January 2026, down from 2.7 percent in December 2025.

(Colombo/Jan31/2025)