Sri Lanka default hints at trouble ahead for developing nations

Big problems: The Sri Lankan turmoil, heightened by a massive debt crises, has led to protests and other civil unrest. — AP

COLOMBO: Sri Lanka’s impending default on US$12.6bil (RM55.4bil) of overseas bonds is flashing a warning sign to investors in other developing nations that surging inflation is set to take a painful toll.

The South Asian nation was set to blow through the grace period on US$78mil (RM343mil) of payments yesterday, marking its first sovereign debt default since it gained independence from Britain in 1948.