Tourism earnings declined by 10% year-on-year to USD 2.06 billion during the first eight months of 2026, compared with USD 2.29 billion recorded during the corresponding period of 2025, according to Central Bank of Sri Lanka (CBSL) data.
The latest CBSL figures show that tourism earnings fell by about USD 228.9 million compared with the same period last year.
Tourist arrivals also recorded a decline, although at a much lower rate. Sri Lanka welcomed 1,535,122 tourists between January and August 2026, compared with 1,566,523 arrivals during the corresponding period of 2025, representing a decrease of around 2%.
Meanwhile, 74,637 tourist arrivals were recorded during the first 14 days of September.
According to the report by the Sri Lanka Tourism Development Authority, a total of 1,609,759 tourists arrived in the country between January 1 and September 14.
