Sri Lanka's exports sector has recorded the highest first half earnings witnessed in five years for the January - June half of 2014.
Sri Lanka's January - June 2014 provisional exports has recorded the highest 1H earnings since 2010, registering US$ 5.41 billion. This is an increase of 45% from the 1H earnings of 2010 which stood at US$ 3.74 billion.
Exports earnings in in the first six months 2014 compared to the same period in 2010, within the five-year span manufacturing exports had surged almost 100%, followed by agro exports by 70%, industrial exports by 69%, fisheries exports by 65%, apparels by 57% and tea exports by 56%.
On a 1H YoY comparison of export regions, the highest exports growth is seen from the African region (41%), followed by EU (19%) and the Middle East (19%), US (17%), Central and Eastern Europe (15%), BRICS (14%), Latin America (12%), South Asia (11%) and CIS (6%). Leading five markets (countries) of exports on YoY in 1H 2014 are US, UK, Italy, India, and Germany.
Minister of Industry and Commerce Rishad Bathiyutheen has commended the country's apex export body, the Export Development Board (EDB) for the export earnings figures.
"Latest reports are good news for our US$20 billion goal, therefore we should commend our committed exporters for this achievement," Minister Bathiyutheen said when the EDB chairman Bandula Egodage briefed the Minister of the latest provisional export revenues.
The EDB is working towards achieving US$ 20 billion in exports earnings by 2020.
