Sri Lanka's inflation surges to a record 60.8pc

Sri Lanka's inflation surged to a record 60.8 per cent in July, the crisis-struck country's statistics department said on Friday, compared to a 54.6 per cent rise in June.

The jump in the Colombo Consumer Price Index was led by a 90.9 per cent climb in food inflation, the Census and Statistics Department said in a statement, reports Reuters.

The island nation has been gripped by a political and economic crisis that has forced a change of leadership, and is now in a state of emergency.