CSF launches new policy brief on Trade Policy Uncertainty and Impacts on Exporters

Monday, 11 August 2025 05:49 - - {{hitsCtrl.values.hits}}

The Centre for a Smart Future (CSF) has published a new policy brief titled ‘Trade Policy Uncertainty and Impacts on Sri Lankan Exporters.’

The pervasive and unpredictable nature of ongoing trade policy developments and the many dimensions of impacts that the resulting uncertainty causes are important considerations for further exploration in Sri Lanka. This new policy brief by the CSF, authored by Anushka Wijesinha and Senith Abeynayake, takes an early look at the effects of trade policy uncertainty on Sri Lankan export-oriented firms, based on an executive opinion survey and key informant interviews.

Key findings and takeaways from the survey and interviews:

There is a wide variation in how, and to what extent, trade policy uncertainty has affected export businesses.
Most export leaders spent a balanced amount of time in ‘immediate crisis management’ and ‘medium-term initiatives.’
Firms experienced mixed impacts on orders to the US, with differences among apparel and non-apparel exporters.
Buyer reactions to tariff announcements were mixed, with some ‘wait-and-see’ approaches and some margin shrinking.
Exporters have taken diverse measures to adapt to the uncertainty, ranging from absorbing margin losses to commencing export diversification.
Expectations from the Government are high, especially on the clarity of trade policy developments.

As Sri Lanka formulates its strategy to face these trade policy challenges, this policy brief can help inform Sri Lankan exporters, trade chambers, and the Government to understand the dimensions of impacts better and inform public-private collaboration to develop smarter responses to this evolving issue.

The policy brief can be accessed at: https://www.csf-asia.org/trade-policy-uncertainty-srilanka-exporters/.