'Sri Lanka's economy has completely collapsed'

Colombo: Sri Lanka's economy has "completely collapsed" and it is facing a far more serious situation beyond the mere shortages of fuel, gas, electricity and food, Prime Minister Ranil Wickremesinghe warned on Wednesday, underscoring the urgency of arriving at an early agreement with the IMF to obtain an additional credit facility.

Sri Lanka has been facing the worst economic crisis since independence in 1948 which has prompted an acute shortage of essential items like food, medicine, cooking gas and fuel across the island nation.

Giving an update to Parliament on the government's mitigation measures taken so far, Wickremesinghe, also the finance minister, said, it is no easy task to revive a country with a "completely collapsed" economy, especially one that is dangerously low on foreign reserves.