SLanka president: IMF talks nearing successful end

Sri Lanka’s president said Tuesday that his bankrupt country's talks with the International Monetary Fund for a rescue package have successfully reached the final stages as he presented an amended budget that seeks to accommodate inflation and hike taxes.
President RanilWickremesinghe, who is also the finance minister, said that his government will soon start negotiating debt restructuring with countries that provide loans to Sri Lanka.The president warned the country must prepare for at least 25 years of a national economic policy, staring with the 2023 budget.Sri Lanka is facing its worst economic crisis with acute months long shortages of essentials like fuel, medicine, and cooking gas due to a severe foreign currency shortage.Sri Lanka’s total foreign debt exceeds $51 billion - of which it must repay $28 billion by 2027.