Sri Lanka's Apex Organisation for Export Promotion
Russia has granted approval to import fish and fish products to the Russian Federation from Sri Lanka, 2014, the External Affairs Ministry said.
The Ministry said the Federal Service of Veterinary Surveillance under the Ministry of Agriculture of the Russian Federation granted approval to import fish and fish products to the Russian Federation as a result of the untiring efforts of the Sri Lankan Government through its Embassy in Russia.
For the first time in Sri Lanka’s apparel history, the Export Development Board has directly linked top Lankan apparel suppliers with the world’s largest textile retailer, Spain’s ZARA and is stepping up its support for apparel market diversification.
“Though the Lankan apparel sector caters to many international brands, we have still not been able to manufacture to Zara brand, the world largest fashion retailer.
This successful effort directly linked our apparels to Zara for the first time,” said Chitranjali Dissanayake (Director-Industrial Products of SLEDB).
For the first time in Sri Lanka’s apparel history, the EDB, Sri Lanka’s apex export facilitator, has directly linked top Lankan apparel suppliers with the world’s largest textile retailer, Spain’s ZARA on 29 October. The facilitator, the Sri Lanka Export Development Board (EDB), is stepping up its support for apparel market diversification.
“Though the Lankan apparel sector caters to many international brands, such as Victoria’s Secret, Gap, Nike, Tommy Hilfiger and Marks & Spencer, we still haven’t been able to manufacture for the Zara brand, the world’s largest fashion retailer. This successful effort directly linked our apparels to Zara for the first time,” said EDB Director – Industrial Products Chitranjali Dissanayake recently.
The Taiwan textile industry is the acknowledged world leader in research, development and manufacturing of fabric and garment accessories. The highly successful Taiwan Textile Fairs brings together leading suppliers of textiles and related products from Taiwan, one of the world’s largest apparel textiles exporting countries to Sri Lanka, at the Taiwan Textiles Fairs in South Asia 2014.
The fairs will showcase innovative and high performance functional textiles for apparel, bags, shoes, rainwear, etc. to Sri Lankan manufacturers. The fair will be held on 24 and 25 November at the Grand Crystal Ballroom of the Taj Samudra Hotel.
Sri Lankan exports broke fresh ground on 20 November, as a pioneering MoU between the country’s apex exports facilitator EDB and China was entered into in Colombo. With the commencement of FTA talks, bilateral relations have also further deepened.
“During President Xi Jinping’s recent visit to Sri Lanka this September, he and President Mahinda Rajapaksa reached consensus to deepen the strategic partnership and joint construction of 21 Century Maritime Silk Road. Now the countries have officially started the bilateral FTA negotiations and we believe that the bilateral cooperation would be further deepened in future,” said Zhang Hua, Vice President of CCPIT Guangdong Sub Committee.
A conference and workshop under the theme “Wood Based Industry – Way Forward’ organized by the Wood Based Industrialist Association of Sri Lanka (WBIA), will be held at the Export Development Board (EDB) Auditoriumon on November 28.
Channa Wijesekera, President of the Wood Based Industrialist Association of Sri Lanka, is expected to outline the problems facing the wood based industry in this article. He explains why this important industry has not developed over the years and proposes a series of solutions to remedy the situation.
When analyzing the development of t he various industries in Sri Lanka, the timber and ti mber related industry indicates a comparative downward trend or slow progress in comparison with the other industries.
The Jaffna International Trade Fair (JITF), the most comprehensive and ‘looked forward to’ exhibition in the North will be held for the sixth consecutive year in the heart of Jaffna from the January 23-25, 2015.
The exhibition which was the first of its kind to be held in the Northern region of the country has throughout the years been renowned as the best and most potent platform for the meeting of investors, businesses and the masses in the region.
The Jaffna International Trade Fair (JITF), the most comprehensive and ‘looked forward to’ exhibition in the North will be held for the sixth consecutive year in the heart of Jaffna from the January 23-25, 2015.
The exhibition which was the first of its kind to be held in the Northern region of the country has throughout the years been renowned as the best and most potent platform for the meeting of investors, businesses and the masses in the region.
Kenya, the newest entrant to Africa’s top 10 list, called for renewed trade with Sri Lanka and in a display of its commitment towards this end requested three trade pacts with Sri Lanka in one go by 2015.
“We are looking forward to more trade interaction and expecting a delegation to Nairobi from Sri Lanka next year. By the time of your visit to Nairobi we are looking forward to conclude current discussions on three agreements being discussed and to sign them,” said Amb. Nelson Ndirangu Ogn (Director, Economic Affairs and International Trade of Kenyan Ministry of Foreign Affairs, Nairobi) on 12 November in Colombo.
Sri Lanka's Export Trade sector recorded a relatively a higher growth of 11.1 per cent in second quarter 2014, when compared to the slower growth of 1.2 per cent recorded in the second quarter of 2013, Department of Census and Statistics said in its Quarterly Estimates of Gross Domestic Product report released recently.
According to the Balance of Payment statistics of Central Bank of Sri Lanka, export earnings increased to Rs343,058 million in the second quarter of 2014, from Rs291,274 million in the second quarter 2013, indicating a growth of 17.8 per cent, said the Census and Statistics Department.
As bilateral trade with Bangladesh showed a strong rise, the country has signalled that it has now started moving towards the historic trade pact with Sri Lanka, as revealed yesterday in Colombo, and Bangladesh wants the agreement to be signed fast.
“At my final meeting with Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina just before my departure to Colombo, she advised me to focus strongly on trade during my new tenure in Sri Lanka. I am pleased to inform you that the trade agreement under discussion between both countries at present will come to a successful end,” announced the newly-appointed Bangladeshi High Commissioner to Sri Lanka Tarik Ashan yesterday.
Sri Lanka has earned USD 7.34 billion from exports up to August this year, recording a positive growth of 14 per cent when compared to the corresponding period in 2013, said Sri Lanka Export Development Board Chairman cum Chief Executive Officer Bandula Egodage.
Addressing a gathering at the First International Ornamental Fish Trade Conference in Colombo yesterday he said despite many constraints and challenges faced by local exports domestically and internationally, the willingness shown by them to sustain continuous growth was commendable.
The rubber industry in Sri Lanka has the potential to grow bigger than the garment industry. “Unfortunately, foreign investors have not seen the possibility of this factor,” says Global Rubber Industries Ltd (GRI) Managing Director Prabhash Subasinghe.
According to GRI, a leading industrial solid tyre manufacturer based in Sri Lanka; supplying solid tyres to Original Equipment (OE) manufacturers and replacement markets in more than 45 countries worldwide since 2001; Sri Lanka is the world’s largest producer of high-quality solid tyres, dominating about 60% of the global market.As Lanka-Nepal trade leaped by threefold and showed new signs of revival, the biggest Nepali business delegation to Sri Lanka after almost a decade concluded their visit successfully on 2 November and also gave an unprecedented opening for the country’s artisans to enter two of the highly profitable craft markets in the region through Nepal and Sri Lanka’s creative artisans have been invited to November’s International Fair in Kathmandu.
“Sri Lanka and Nepal have historic relations and now is the time to go to the next step; towards stronger bilateral trade. The main reason we are coming to Sri Lanka is that you have very good gem processing technology – also we need your natural precious stones,” announced Trade and Export Promotion Center (TEPC) Member of Board of Directors and the leader of the visiting Nepali delegation Bikash R. Dhakwa on 29 October in Colombo.
