LONDON : The International Monetary Fund said Sri Lanka should kick off debt restructuring talks with its bilateral lender China, while the island state's government seeks a financing loan from the Washingtonne-based fund.
Six-time prime minister Ranil Wickremesinghe was recently appointed as president after a popular uprising ousted his predecessor following months of severe shortages of fuel, food and medicines.The country owes Beijing some $6.5 billion in financing including development bank loans and a central bank swap, according to data from the Institute of International Finance .
Sri Lanka's foreign ministry and central bank did not immediately respond to a request for comment. China's embassy in Sri Lanka did not immediately respond. An Extended Fund Facility programmememe from the IMF, which would be the fund's 17th plan for the nation, requires countries to make structural economic reforms https://www.imf.org/en/About/Factsheets/Sheets/2016/08/01/20/56/Extended-Fund-Facility.
10% debt is china, what about the rest?
China will happily oblige. What can Sri Lanka give in return?