Merchandise export revenue rose 11.87% year-on-year to $915.3 million in April 2022, the highest monthly value recorded for the month of April.
This was mainly due to increased income from the export of garments and textiles, coconut products and rubber products. In addition, a significant increase was recorded in exports of electrical and electronic components and in the seafood sector.
Sri Lanka’s merchandise exports hit an all-time high for the month of April at US$915.3 million this year, surpassing the previous record high of US$799 million set in 2021, Suresh D de Mel, Chairman – Export Development Board (EDB) mentioned.
It must also be emphasized that effective facilitation of fuel and energy supply to our exporters is imperative to maintain this momentum while calling for a rapid solution to the current crisis.
Additionally, we need to focus on niche markets while consolidating market share in the US and EU. Export product diversification must occur simultaneously so that we can create more billion dollar industries for Sri Lanka, which we lack today.
Monthly Merchandise Export Performance, 2020 – April 2022 in US$ Million
Table 1: Performance of merchandise exports
Values in millions of US dollars
| Merchandise exports |
Jan-Apr 2020 |
Jan-Apr 2021 |
Jan-Apr 2022 |
% Growth |
Apr 2021 |
Apr 2022 |
% Growth |
|
Clothing and textiles |
1,315.78 |
1,693.31 |
1,917.95 |
13.27 |
365.04 |
445.79 |
22.12 |
|
Tea |
348.44 |
417.38 |
367.21 |
-12.02 |
79.26 |
80.44 |
1.49 |
|
rubber based |
229.11 |
333.28 |
337.58 |
1.29 |
64.74 |
71.27 |
10.09 |
|
Coconut-based |
164.81 |
250.49 |
279.44 |
11.56 |
55.76 |
70.73 |
26.85 |
|
Diamond, gemstones and jewelry |
54.44 |
92.86 |
98.20 |
5.75 |
27.77 |
25.49 |
– 8.21 |
|
Electronics and electronic components |
91.42 |
129.09 |
146.48 |
1:47 p.m. |
27.06 |
34.38 |
27.05 |
|
Spices and essential oils |
63.49 |
136.76 |
107.13 |
-21.67 |
22.46 |
9:55 p.m. |
-4.05 |
|
Food and drinks |
100.82 |
117.44 |
132.47 |
12.80 |
24.60 |
30.92 |
25.69 |
|
Seafood |
63.26 |
75.55 |
88.94 |
17.72 |
19.19 |
21.22 |
10.58 |
|
ornamental fish |
3.94 |
5.03 |
5.83 |
15.90 |
1.25 |
1.03 |
-17.60 |
|
Vegetables |
7.92 |
7.83 |
7.98 |
1.92 |
1.87 |
1.74 |
-6.95 |
|
Fruits & Nuts |
11.34 |
11.98 |
10.50 |
-12:35 p.m. |
2.87 |
2.67 |
-6.97 |
|
Other export crops |
24.77 |
19.00 |
23.28 |
22.53 |
4.84 |
8.28 |
71.07 |
|
Flowers & Foliage |
4.37 |
4.74 |
4.94 |
4.22 |
1.02 |
0.95 |
-6.86 |
|
boat building |
0.91 |
0.95 |
5.10 |
436.84 |
0.31 |
0.34 |
9.68 |
|
Oil products |
114.41 |
23.42 |
65.07 |
177.84 |
1:46 p.m. |
4:30 |
-68.05 |
|
Others |
332.67 |
481.19 |
567.10 |
17.85 |
106.70 |
94.20 |
-11.72 |
| Total merchandise exports |
2,931.90 |
3,800.30 |
4,165.20 |
9.60 |
818.20 |
915.30 |
11.87 |
Table 2: Top 10 Export Destinations
Values in millions of US dollars
| Country |
Jan-Apr 2020 |
Jan-Apr 2021 |
Jan-Apr 2022 |
% Growth |
Apr 2021 |
Apr 2022 |
% Growth | |
|
1 |
United States |
759.58 |
920.60 |
1,097.66 |
19.23 |
205.20 |
249.02 |
9:35 p.m. |
|
2 |
UK |
253.65 |
294.23 |
333.40 |
1:31 p.m. |
68.34 |
84.14 |
23.12 |
|
3 |
India |
184.90 |
247.35 |
282.48 |
2:20 p.m. |
53.91 |
59.47 |
10.31 |
|
4 |
Germany |
157.76 |
232.20 |
247.35 |
6.52 |
52.03 |
66.53 |
27.87 |
|
5 |
Italy |
117.57 |
185.57 |
192.42 |
3.69 |
33.52 |
42.57 |
27:00 |
|
6 |
Belgium |
78.70 |
105.47 |
95.03 |
-9.90 |
22.26 |
25.93 |
16.49 |
|
7 |
Netherlands |
71.60 |
134.99 |
130.40 |
-3.40 |
28.21 |
27.71 |
-1.77 |
|
8 |
Canada |
59.19 |
94.51 |
116.06 |
22.80 |
22.37 |
28.68 |
28.21 |
|
9 |
China |
58.25 |
96.05 |
79.32 |
-17.42 |
18.81 |
14.72 |
-21.74 |
|
ten |
United Arab Emirates |
61.62 |
70.17 |
89.19 |
27.11 |
4:33 p.m. |
3:00 p.m. |
-8.14 |
|
Other markets |
1,129.08 |
1,419.16 |
1,501.89 |
5.83 |
297.22 |
301.53 |
1.45 |
|
| Total |
2,931.90 |
3,800.30 |
4,165.20 |
9.60 |
818.20 |
915.30 |
11.87 |
Table 3: Export regions
Values in millions of US dollars
| Region |
Jan-Apr 2020 |
Jan-Apr 2021 |
Jan-Apr 2022 |
% Growth |
Apr 2021 |
Apr 2022 |
% Growth |
|
United States |
759.58 |
920.60 |
1097.66 |
19.23 |
205.20 |
249.02 |
9:35 p.m. |
|
European Union (EU) excluding UK |
613.11 |
925.95 |
956.94 |
3.35 |
192.43 |
230.91 |
20.00 |
|
South Asia |
282.55 |
361.01 |
425.28 |
17.80 |
78.32 |
86.95 |
11.02 |
|
Middle Eastern countries (except Cyprus and Egypt) |
216.71 |
243.93 |
282.45 |
15.79 |
49.17 |
56.25 |
2:40 p.m. |
|
African countries |
65.85 |
100.05 |
104.11 |
4.06 |
25.68 |
18.64 |
-27.41 |
|
ASEAN countries |
101.7 |
89.58 |
94.49 |
5.48 |
26.19 |
23.74 |
-9.35 |
|
CIS countries |
79.97 |
82.56 |
67.13 |
-18.69 |
16.03 |
11.77 |
-26.58 |
|
Others |
812.43 |
1,076.62 |
1,137.14 |
5.62 |
225.18 |
238.02 |
5.70 |
| Total merchandise exports | 2,931.90 | 3,800.30 | 4,165.20 | 9.60 | 818.20 | 915.30 | 11.87 |
Service export
The estimated value of services exports for the period January to April 2022 was $1,188.8 million, an increase of 96.2% compared to the corresponding period of 2021. Services exports estimated by EDB include ICT/BPM, construction, financial services and transport and logistics. .