Non-essential petrol sales halted for two weeks in Sri Lanka

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As it faces its worst economic crisis in decades, Sri Lanka has stopped selling fuel for non- essential vehicles.

Only buses, trains, and vehicles used for medical services will be allowed to fill up for the next two weeks.

The country has 22 million people who have been told to work from home.

The South Asian nation is struggling to pay for imports like fuel and food.

Private vehicles will not be allowed to buy petrol and diesel until July 10th.

Sri Lanka has never faced such a severe economic crisis according to Bandula Gunewardena.

The cash- strapped country has sent officials to the major energy producers in order to get cheap oil.

Sri Lanka's economy has been hit hard by a number of factors.

A shortage of food, fuel and medicines has pushed the cost of living to record highs because of a lack of foreign currency.

Over the weekend, officials said the country had only a small amount of diesel and petrol for essential services.

The stock would last for less than a week.

Power and energy minister Kanchana Wijesekera told reporters on Sunday that they don't know when new stocks will be.

The fuel restrictions were a small sign of a worsening crisis, according to a senior economist.

People were waiting in long lines for fuel and that made mobility very limited. The economic pain will be compounded by the complete ban on private vehicles.

The country became the first in its history to default on its debts.

A team from the International Monetary Fund arrived in SriLanka last week for talks.

India and China are being sought to help import essential items.

The country needs at least $5 billion over the next six months to pay for essential goods.

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