Today (21 March), the Sri Lankan rupee has experienced an appreciation against the USD, following a rising trend that has been observed over the past five days. According to the Central Bank of Sri Lanka (CBSL), the USD buying rate has decreased from Rs. 331.71 (reported on 20 March) to Rs. 316.84, while the selling rate has decreased from 349.93 to 334.87 for Telegrpah Transfers (TT) as quoted by commercial banks in Colombo.
This increase in the value of LKR is believed to be a result of the approval by the IMF board for the Extended Fund Facility, which was granted last night. However, the appreciation of the LKR is not yet reflected against other currencies such as the British pound and the Euro, which have remained stable with only marginal fluctuations.