As imports from India rise in the island nation relative to Chinese supplies, Indian fabric is gaining momentum in the Sri Lankan textile market. Sri Lanka has seen an increase in its imports of fabric from India, which have increased by more than 50% in the past four years, but its imports from China have remained unchanged.
Sri Lanka imported more fabric from India, from $374.214 million in 2017 to $565.848 million in 2021. Due to the pandemic, the inbound cargo fell to $410.881 million in 2020 from $426.046 million in 2018 and $485.160 million in 2019. In 2021, it increased again to $565.848 million. Between January and November 2022, Sri Lanka imported fabrics worth $556.921 million. The total imports for 2022 will probably be higher than the exports for 2021.
Sri Lanka imported $887.72 million of fabric from China in 2017, which is expected to rise to $897.101 million by 2021. In four years, the cargo climbed by merely 1%. In 2018 and 2019, imports totaled $892.740 million and $944.202 million, respectively. In 2020, it was $720.823 million, but in 2021, it rose to $897.101 million.
According to information from TexPro, Sri Lanka imported fabric worth $829.451 million in the first eleven months of 2022. During the first eleven months of 2022, Sri Lanka imported $2.141 billion of textiles. China and India were the leading suppliers, with a combined contribution of more than 64%. China’s imports accounted for 38.73% of the total, while India’s contribution was only 26.11%.
