Sri Lanka, Nov. 11 -- The Sri Lankan government's latest budget indicates that the authorities remain committed to reducing government debt/GDP over the medium term after beating their targets in the 2025 budget. Fitch Ratings believes sustained strong revenue performance will remain key to meeting the government's fiscal goals.
The budget, unveiled on 7 November, targets a deficit of 5.1% of GDP in 2026, wider than the 4.5% that the government expects in 2025. The original deficit target for 2025 in last year's budget was 6.7% of GDP, but in March the IMF projected a lower figure of 5.4%. The latest budget forecasts the primary balance before interest payments will remain in surplus at 2.5% of GDP in 2026, down from an expected 3.8% in 20...