Sri Lanka to act against travellers wearing too many gold jewelry
ECONOMYNEXT – Sri Lanka authorities will take actions against travellers entering the country wearing too much gold jewelry, State Minister of Finance Ranjith Siyambalapitiya has said.
“Some individuals are doing this as a racket,” he said in a statement. “Several of them have been identified.”
Gold and other items are usually smuggled as an organized business by couriers – usually called ‘mules’ – across borders when there are import restrictions or high import taxes.
Sri Lanka slapped a 15 percent tax on gold in 2018 as money was printed for stimulus (output gap targeting) under flexible inflation targeting through several tools, encouraging smuggling.
Sri Lanka in 2022 is in the grip of a severe forex crisis and there is a strong demand for gold.
The precious metal is usually smuggled to the country including via the sea during currency crisis. (Colombo/Oct17/2022)