Export sector records US$ 10.5 b in 2011
Sanjeevi JAYASURIYA
A healthy US $ 10.5 billion was recorded as the foreign exchange
earned by Sri Lanka’s export sector for 2011. The export sector
performed beyond expectations and was able to reach $ 10.5 billion for
the last year. This is a great achievement when considering the
turbulent external environment that prevailed. We were able to surpass
the expected $ 9.3 billion for the year and recorded a year-on-year
growth of 22 percent, Sri Lanka Export Development Board Chairman and
CEO Janaka Ratnayake told ‘Daily News Business’.
The export sector contribution for the national GDP stands at 18
percent at present.
The sector performed well to top the $ 10 billion mark despite our
main export markets in Europe recording a sluggish growth and facing
debt crisis. The initiatives to capture niche markets with premium
prices and branding enabled the country to increase export earnings.
This shows that Sri Lanka is resilient to global shocks, he said.
The key sectors in the export base except fisheries showed upward
movement last year. The country will be able to reach our national
target of $ 20 billion for 2016 even before and with this trend
continuing this target could be achieved by 2014, Ratnayake said.
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