Sri Lanka achieves record exports in April

Sri Lankan merchandise exports grew to an all-time record of US$ 915.3 million in April 2022, surpassing the previous high of US$ 799 million achieved in 2021.

Earnings from the merchandise exports increased by 11.87% y-o-y to US$ 915.3 million in April 2022, the highest monthly value recorded for the month of April, Chairman – Export Development Board (EDB) Suresh D de Mel said.

“This was mainly due to the increase in earnings from export of Apparel & Textiles, Coconut based products and Rubber based products. Further, a sizable increase was recorded in the exports of Electrical & Electronic Components and in the Seafood sector.”

 “It must also be highlighted that, efficient facilitation of the supply of fuel and energy to our exporters is imperative to keep this momentum going while appealing for an expedited solution to the current crisis. Further, we need to focus on niche markets while consolidating the market share in the US and EU. Export product diversification must simultaneously happen so that we can create more billion-dollar industries for Sri Lanka which we are lacking today.”

Major product sectors except Spices & Concentrates, Apparel & Textiles, Tea, Rubber-based products, Coconut based products, Electronics & Electronic Components, Food & Beverages and Seafood recorded increased exports in April 2022.

Exports of Apparel & Textiles increased by 22.12% y-o-y to US$ 445.79 million in April 2022. The increase was driven by both Apparel and Textiles.

Export earnings from tea in April 2022 which made up 12% of merchandise exports, increased by 1.49% y-o-y to US$ 80.44 million. Export of bulk tea increased by 9.52% in April 2022 compared to April 2021.

Export earnings from Rubber and Rubber Finished products have increased by 10.09% y-o-y to $ 71.27 million in April 2022, with good performance in exports of Pneumatic & Retreated Rubber Tyres & Tubes (23.21%).

On monthly analysis, export earnings of kernel products, fiber products and shell products categorized under the Coconut based increased by 19.21%, 24.33% and 52.43% respectively in April 2022. Export earnings from Seafood increased by 10.58% to US$ 21.22 million in April 2022 compared to April 2021.

“Furthermore, export earnings from the Electrical & Electronics Components increased by 27.05 % y-o-y to US$ 34.38 million in April 2022 with strong performance in exports of Insulated Wires & Cables (26.56%) and Electrical Transformers (71.36%).”

For the period of January to April 2022, merchandise exports increased by 9.6 % to US$ 4,165.2 million. Apparel & Textile exports increased by 13.27% to US$ 1,917.95 million during the period.