FINANCIAL CHRONICLE – In June 2026, Sri Lanka’s tourism sector experienced a significant downturn, recording its lowest monthly foreign exchange earnings in recent times. According to the central bank, tourism revenue dropped by 10.9 percent year-on-year, totaling US$151.1 million, based on data from the tourism promotion authority. This figure represents the weakest monthly performance since October 2023.
The decline in revenue follows a recent adjustment by the government-owned tourism promotion agency, which modified its estimates for daily tourist spending and the average length of stay just a month prior. Furthermore, the overall tourism earnings have been consistently decreasing on a year-over-year basis since the onset of the U.S./Israel military actions against Iran on February 28.
In the first half of the year, tourism revenue totaled US$1,511.1 million, a decline of 11.8 percent compared to US$1,712.6 million during the same timeframe last year. The Sri Lanka Tourism Development Authority (SLTDA) had also updated the methodology for calculating monthly tourism earnings as of January this year, announcing these changes in May to improve accuracy and representation.
Since August of the previous year, the earnings from tourism have consistently fallen despite an uptick in visitor arrivals, as indicated by officials. Notably, June marked the tenth decline in monthly revenue over the past twelve months, excluding the months of September and October last year.
Looking ahead, Sri Lanka has ambitious goals for the tourism sector, aiming for 3 million arrivals and US$4 billion in revenue by 2026. In 2025, the island nation generated US$3.22 billion in tourism revenue, reflecting a modest increase of 1.6 percent from US$3.17 billion the previous year. Visitor numbers surged by 15.1 percent, with foreign arrivals reaching a record 2,362,521, up from 2,053,465 in the prior year.
At its peak in 2018, tourism constituted nearly 5 percent of Sri Lanka’s economy. However, the sector has faced significant challenges, including the devastating Easter Sunday attacks in 2019, the global Covid-19 pandemic in 2020, and an ongoing economic crisis. The tourism revenue figures are derived from surveys conducted by the Sri Lanka Tourism Development Authority.
As tourism earnings fluctuate, the country’s imports and merchandise trade deficit have been gradually increasing, influenced by spending patterns of those employed in the tourism industry. (Colombo/July 13/2026)
