Sri Lanka to miss $ 18.2 b export target this year

SRI Lanka is projected to fall short of its export target of achieving $ 18.2 billion in 2025 due to exterEDB Chairman nal and internal Mangala shocks, though Wijesinghe preparing for a major structural shift in its strategy to boost earnings to $20 billion next year.

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"We expect to close 2025 with $ 17-17.5 billion in export revenue, slightly below the original forecast of $ 18.2 billion, due to external and domestic factors, particularly the recent adverse weather," Export Development Board (EDB) Chairman Mangala Wijesinghe said.

Speaking at a panel discussion at the 'Investment Pulse - Why Sri Lanka: Investor View'session of the Sri Lanka Economic Summit organised by The Ceylon Chamber of Commerce last week, he said they, however, remain on track for next year's target of $20 billion.

Over the past 10 months, total exports in both merchandise and services exports amounted to $ 14.4 billion, reflecting a 6% growth rate, which the EDB Chief described as a significant uptick compared with the past decade and signalling a positive trend despite structural vulnerabilities.

He noted that the EDB has set out an ambitious agenda to reduce Sri Lanka's longstanding dependence on traditional commodities and apparel, aiming to raise the export sector's share of GDP from roughly 19% to 25% by 2030.

"To reach the $ 36 billion target, comprising $ 28 billion from merchandise and over $8 billion from services, Sri Lanka must sustain annual export growth of 10-12% from 2026 onwards," he said.

Wijesinghe accepted the challenge of moving beyond Sri Lanka's traditional sectors, stressing that product and value-chain diversification must be paired with market diversification and structural reform.

He said the Government's strategy, embodied in a soon-to-bepublished National Export Development Plan (NEDP) for 2026-2030, aims for total export receipts of about $ 36 billion by the end of the four years, driven by faster growth in both merchandise and services exports.