• Says global recession and ongoing conflicts severely impact exports
• Underscores difficulty in forecasting amidst highly volatile economic landscapes

 By Charumini de Silva

The Export Development Board (EDB) Chairman Dr. Kingsley Bernard stressed the challenges of meeting 2023 export objectives in the face of global headwinds, but stated that efforts are actively in progress to seek innovative ways to boost exports. 

Considering the available data and global economic trends it seems that the sector is unable to achieve the set export target for 2023 amid the recession in key markets and adverse impacts of the ongoing wars. 

Originally, the EDB forecasted a performance of $ 18.51 billion in merchandise and service exports in 2023 including $ 15.93 billion from merchandise exports and $ 2.58 billion from services exports. However, the first nine months of data show that cumulative merchandise exports saw a substantial decline of 10.31% YoY to $ 8.96 billion compared to the corresponding period of 2022.

Against this backdrop, the EDB Chief said it was very difficult to forecast surrounded by the fast-evolving economic landscapes.

“We cannot estimate the numbers for the year amid the highly volatile global scenario,” he told the Daily FT. 

One of the key reasons for the downward export performance this year is the plunge in apparel and exports. Apparel and textiles remain the main export engine for Sri Lanka, but during the first nine months, it fell by 19.4% to $ 3.67 billion compared to the same period of 2022. From January to September 2023, earnings from apparel exports fell by 20.67%, while earnings from textile exports fell by 4.28%.

In 2022, Sri Lanka’s merchandise export was $ 13.07 billion, up by 5% from 2021, but fell short $ 1.03 billion from the set target. The EDB forecasted a total export target of $ 16.1 billion for 2022, consisting of $ 14.94 billion from merchandise exports and $ 2 billion from service exports. The highest performance of total exports was $ 15.91 billion in 2018.

Recently, the EDB in collaboration with the Ministry of Investment Promotion has obtained technical support from the International Trade Centre (ITC) based in Geneva to revisit its existing Export Strategic Plan – National Export Strategy 2018-2022.

The current initiative focuses on revitalising the existing National Export Strategy to align it with contemporary market challenges and harness emerging opportunities while fast-tracking game-changer activities to revitalise the development process of the country as a trade and investment hub.

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