Sri Lanka inflation rate surges to 70.2% in August

FILE PHOTO: Sri Lankan rupees are seen in a bowl at a vegetable vendor's shop amid the rampant food inflation, amid Sri Lanka's economic crisis, in Colombo, Sri Lanka, July 29 , 2022. REUTERS/Kim Kyung-Hoon

(Reuters) - Consumer inflation in Sri Lanka accelerated to 70.2% in August, the statistics department said on Wednesday, as the island nation reels under its worst economic crisis in decades.

The National Consumer Price Index (NCPI) rose 70.2% last month from a year earlier, after a 66.7% increase in July, the Department of Census and Statistics said in a statement.