Sri Lanka’s exports drop slightly in August 2020

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Sep 12, 2020 (LBO) – Sri Lanka’s exports during the month of August 2020 recorded a downfall of 8.3% to US$ 947.7 Mn as compared to the value of US$ 1,033.3 Mn recorded same month of last year.

Despite the decline in exports, some products like Coconut based products, Electricals & Electronic Components, Spices, and Essential Oils and Food & Beverages recorded a positive growth of 22.88%, 8.32%, 19.4%, and 11.45% respectively, during the month of August 2020 as compared to August 2019.

"It is remarkable to see another month of almost a billion dollars of exports. However, we are being watchful of the months ahead whilst understanding the impact of COVID-19 on our key markets of the US and Europe," said Export Development Board (EDB) Chairman Prabhash Subasinghe.

"We also need to focus on export product and market diversification which is seriously lacking today. Whilst appreciating that the US and the EU are the largest markets, we need to now create a significant export market in Asia including China. The China FTA will certainly help in this regard. Export product diversification must simultaneously happen so that we can create more billion-dollar industries for Sri Lanka.”

Table 1 : Merchandise Export Performance (Values in US$ Mns)

 Exports of Goods Jan.- Aug 2019 Jan.- Aug 2020 % Growth Aug 2019 Aug 2020 % Growth
 Apparel 3,724.14 2,842.03 -23.69 498.03 438.33 -11.99
 Tea 914.99 805.56 -11.96 118.74 102.98 -13.27
 Rubber-based 609.87 506.77 -16.91 74.56 72.51 -2.75
 Coconut-based 423.50 421.70 -0.43 53.15 65.31 22.88
 Diamond, Gems &  Jewelry 197.42 98.70 -50.01 22.13 13.19 -40.40
 Electricals & Electronic Components 258.42 209.19 -19.05 30.41 32.94 8.32
 Spices and Essential Oils 204.09 195.59 -4.16 33.40 39.88 19.40
 Food & Beverages 245.86 246.17 0.13 24.90 27.75 11.45
 Seafood 184.46 133.16 -27.81 20.48 15.57 -23.97
 Ornamental Fish 10.14 8.45 -16.67 1.01 0.63 -37.62
 Vegetables 21.03 17.26 -17.93 2.64 1.72 -34.85
 Fruits 27.06 23.18 -14.34 3.31 2.95 -10.88
 Other Export Crops 20.38 56.27 176.10 3.23 6.58 103.72
 Flowers & Foliage 12.94 8.66 -33.08 1.29 0.94 -27.13
 Boat Building 63.75 1.91 -97.00 0.14 0.27 92.86
 Petroleum Products 220.97 227.28 2.86 24.27 21.45 -11.62
 Others 782.14 598.33 -23.50 121.61 104.68 -13.92
 Total Merchandize Exports 7,921.16 6,400.21 -19.20 1,033.30 947.68 -8.29

Sources: Sri Lanka Customs / Sri Lanka Export Development Board

Table 2 : Sri Lanka’s Top  Export Destinations (Values in US$ Mns)

Country Jan.- Aug 2019 Jan.- Aug 2020 % Growth Aug 2019 Aug 2020 % Growth
United States of America 2,083.25 1,652.17 -20.69 280.00 248.63 -11.20
United Kingdom 694.17 552.46 -20.41 83.50 90.76 8.69
India 517.72 396.96 -23.33 64.00 57.57 -10.05
Germany 440.92 371.05 -15.85 58.63 58.48 -0.26
Italy 353.08 280.51 -20.55 44.75 47.04 5.12
Belgium 233.91 183.27 -21.65 37.28 26.51 -28.89
Netherlands 193.21 172.47 -10.73 25.74 25.48 -1.01
United Arab Emirates 184.70 127.88 -30.76 20.02 14.67 -26.72
Canada 162.55 132.93 -18.22 20.92 23.36 11.66
China 154.88 138.73 -10.43 17.90 24.07 34.47
Japan 214.27 127.52 -40.49 15.79 17.56 11.21
Turkey 141.93 131.61 -7.27 20.66 22.35 8.18
Other Markets 2,546.57 2,132.65 -16.25 344.11 291.20 -15.38
Total 7,921.16 6,400.21 -19.20 1,033.30 947.68 -8.29

Sources: Sri Lanka Customs / Sri Lanka Export Development Board

Export of Services

The services exports estimated by EDB which includes ICT/BPM, Construction, Financial services and Transport & Logistics show exports of US $ 2,224.02 Mn for the period of January to August 2020 compared to US$ 2,584.67 Mn recorded in the corresponding period of the previous year.

However, estimated service exports declined by 13.95 % during the period of January to August 2020 compared with the corresponding period of previous year.

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