Sri Lanka's inflation rate witnessed a significant decline in March 2024, dropping to 2.5% compared to 5.1% in February 2024, according to the latest report from the Department of Census and Statistics (DCS).
The National Consumer Price Index (NCPI) revealed that both food and non-food groups contributed to this decrease, with contributions of 2.1% and 0.4% respectively.
Despite a steady Year-on-Year inflation rate of 5.0% in the food group, the non-food group saw a decrease from 5.1% in February 2024 to 0.7% in March 2024.

The reduction in non-food group index values was attributed to declines in categories such as 'Housing, Water, Electricity, Gas and Other fuels' and 'Clothing and Footwear', while increases were noted in 'Alcoholic Beverages, Tobacco and Narcotics' and 'Restaurants and Hotels'. Core inflation, excluding volatile items such as food, energy, and transport, increased to 3.4% in March 2024 from 2.7% in February 2024.