This website is supported by the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, Regional Integration and International Trade of Mauritius.
Expanding markets and Facilitating compliance
Forgotten password |Identification... |Identification problem. Please try again
Sri Lanka is relatively open to international trade, which accounted for 40% of GDP in 2020 (World Bank, 2022). Nonetheless, its share in GDP has declined almost continuously in the last 20 years after peaking at 88.6% in 2000. The country mainly exports textiles and garments (over 40% of total exports in 2020), tea (11.3%), rubber products (over 7%), and refined petroleum (2.1%). Its main imports include refined petroleum (7.9%), textile and textile articles (over 14%), ande crude petroleum with 2.4% (OEC, 2022). In 2020, the COVID-19-led global crisis took its toll on the Sri Lankan international trade too, with exports falling an estimated 19.9% and imports dropping by 13.2% (IMF). As the conjuncture is expected to gradually improve during 2021, both exports and imports should rebound (+33% and +24.1%, respectively).
Sri Lankan exports are directed towards the U.S. (23% of all exports), the United Kingdom (8.1%), India (6.5%), Germany (6%) and Italy (4.1%); whereas imports come chiefly from China (24.7% of all imports), India (20.5%), the U.A.E. (5.7%), Malaysia (4.2%) and Singapore (4%). The country’s trade policy aims to strengthen access for Sri Lankan products on the international market. As such, the Government has signed several bilateral and multilateral trade agreements, especially at the regional level. China and Sri Lanka have been negotiating a free trade agreement. However, while China has been pushing to reach a deal, Sri Lanka stated that they want more time to negotiate the agreement, as the Government is concerned about the economic impact of a rushed deal on its economy (Sri Lanka had demand for a review of the deal after 10 years, to which China did not agree). Therefore, negotiations are currently in a stalemate. Sri Lankan exports have been traditionally less competitive than those of other countries in the region such as Bangladesh and Vietnam due to higher minimum wage rates. Nevertheless, a rapid fall in the value of the Sri Lankan rupee and a minimum wage hike for the workers of the garment industry in Bangladesh and Vietnam helped to level the playing field.
Sri Lanka has a structural trade deficit. In 2020, merchandise imports reached 16.2 billion USD, while exports totalled 11.3 billion USD (OEC, 2022) resulting in a deficit of 4.9 billion USD.
More recently, Sri Lanka’s trade deficit widened to USD 1089 million in January of 2022 from USD 562 million a year ago. Imports surged 46.8% from a year earlier to a record high of USD 2241 million, on higher purchases of intermediate goods (58.2%), namely fuel (88.2%), textiles and textile articles (27%) and base metals (457%). Also, shipments rose for consumer goods (28%), in particular medical and pharmaceutical products (133.7%) and investment goods (36.1%), namely machinery and equipment (45.7%). Meanwhile, exports rose by a softer 20 percent to USD 1156 million, boosted by sales of industrial products (21.3%), mainly textiles and garments (18%), agricultural products (14.3%) and minerals with 8.8% (Central Bank of Sri Lanka, 2022).
Foreign Trade Indicators | 2017 | 2018 | 2019 | 2020 | 2021 |
---|---|---|---|---|---|
Imports of Goods (million USD) | 20,980 | 22,233 | 19,937 | 16,055 | 20,637 |
Exports of Goods (million USD) | 11,360 | 11,890 | 11,940 | 10,047 | 12,499 |
Imports of Services (million USD) | 6,451 | 6,756 | 6,542 | 3,914 | 2,953 |
Exports of Services (million USD) | 7,726 | 8,340 | 7,453 | 3,009 | 2,475 |
Imports of Goods and Services (Annual % Change) | 7 | 3 | -4 | -20 | 4 |
Exports of Goods and Services (Annual % Change) | 8 | 5 | 2 | -30 | 10 |
Trade Balance (million USD) | -9,619 | -10,343 | -7,997 | -6,008 | n/a |
Foreign Trade (in % of GDP) | 47 | 50 | 49 | 37 | 41 |
Imports of Goods and Services (in % of GDP) | 27 | 28 | 28 | 21 | 24 |
Exports of Goods and Services (in % of GDP) | 20 | 21 | 22 | 15 | 17 |
Source: WTO – World Trade Organisation ; World Bank - Latest available data.
Main Customers (% of Exports) |
2021 |
---|---|
United States | 24.7% |
United Kingdom | 7.5% |
India | 6.7% |
Germany | 6.1% |
Italy | 4.7% |
Netherlands | 3.4% |
Belgium | 2.7% |
Canada | 2.5% |
United Arab Emirates | 2.4% |
China | 2.3% |
Australia | 2.0% |
France | 2.0% |
Japan | 1.8% |
Bangladesh | 1.8% |
Mexico | 1.6% |
Türkiye | 1.4% |
Iraq | 1.4% |
Israel | 1.3% |
Hong Kong SAR, China | 1.2% |
Russia | 1.2% |
See More Countries | 50.3% |
Main Suppliers (% of Imports) |
2021 |
---|---|
China | 23.7% |
India | 22.0% |
United Arab Emirates | 6.6% |
Malaysia | 3.8% |
Singapore | 3.6% |
United States | 2.6% |
Indonesia | 2.2% |
Japan | 2.1% |
Vietnam | 2.0% |
Thailand | 2.0% |
Pakistan | 2.0% |
Saudi Arabia | 1.8% |
Germany | 1.7% |
Italy | 1.6% |
South Korea | 1.5% |
Australia | 1.5% |
Hong Kong SAR, China | 1.5% |
New Zealand | 1.4% |
South Africa | 1.3% |
United Kingdom | 1.2% |
See More Countries | 40.2% |
Source: Comtrade, Latest Available Data
Source: Comtrade, Latest Available Data
To go further, check out our service Import Export Flows
8.4 bn USD of services exported in 2018 | |
---|---|
52.31% | |
Personal travelPersonal travel | 52.31% |
29.69% | |
11.88% | |
2.89% | |
1.55% | |
0.78% | |
0.48% | |
0.41% |
4.6 bn USD of services imported in 2018 | |
---|---|
37.69% | |
36.03% | |
Personal travelPersonal travel | 36.03% |
10.51% | |
9.70% | |
2.11% | |
1.63% | |
1.62% | |
0.71% |
Source: United Nations Statistics Division, Latest Available Data
Any Comment About This Content? Report It to Us.
© eexpand, All Rights Reserved.
Latest Update: February 2023
We use cookies to make your connection secure and make statistics about the number of visits. In order to get more information about cookies and find out how to refuse them, visit our cookie policy page .
This popup enables you to set your cookies preference and decide which type of cookies you want to allow on your device.