Exports to major markets record strong growth

• US, India and UK among top three export destinations

Sri Lanka’s export performance in major markets witnessed a strong growth for the month of May, statistics from the Export Development Board (EDB) showed.

In May 2022, exports to the United States, Sri Lanka’s single largest export destination, increased by 25.02 percent to US $ 266.42 million compared to the month of May 2021.

The better performance was led by an increase in exports of apparel and textile (40.83 percent) and coconut-based products (29.69 percent).
India emerged as the second largest export destination for May 2022, contributing US $ 82.51 million to the total revenue.

Exports to the neighbouring giant increased by 49.26 percent when compared with May 2021.
The United Kingdom became the third largest export destination, contributing US $ 78.22 million, which is an 8.20 growth YoY. On a cumulative basis, for the first five months of 2022 ending in May, the US remains the largest export destination, contributing to US $ 1.36 billion in earnings fetched (20.32 percent YoY growth). The UK ranked second, contributing US $ 411.62 million to the total export revenue earned for the period, whereas India ranks third, accounting for US $ 364.99 million of the total export earnings for the January-May 2022 period.  However, for the month of May and for the January to May 2022 period, exports to China dipped by 9.33 percent and 15.96 percent. Meanwhile, during the period of January to May 2022, exports to free trade agreement (FTA) partners accounted for 7.2 percent of total merchandise exports, which increased by 17.67 percent to US $ 398.98 million. Although exports to India increased, exports to Pakistan decreased by 6.75 percent to US $ 33.99 million during the said period. The region-wise comparison shows exports to all regions, except for the CIS countries, increased during the period of January to May 2022 compared with the corresponding period of 2021. Exports to the EU, South Asia, Africa and the Middle East increased in the month of May 2022 compared to May 2021.