According to the latest report released by the Economic Research Department of the Central Bank of Sri Lanka, export earnings from the textile and garment sector – one of Sri Lanka’s key export industries – declined during the first four months of this year.

Textile and garment export earnings amounted to $ 1,624.7 million during the period from January to April, compared to $ 1,751.8 million recorded during the corresponding period in 2025. This represents a decrease of 7.3%.

Meanwhile, Sri Lanka’s total export earnings for the first four months of 2026 recorded a marginal increase, rising to $ 4,534.9 million from $ 4,315.6 million in the same period of 2025.

However, import expenditure increased significantly during the same period, rising to $ 8,227.9 million in 2026 from $ 6,572.9 million in 2025. This reflects a 25.2% increase, driven by a 32.8% rise in consumer goods imports, a 24.1% increase in intermediate goods imports, and a 19.8% increase in investment goods imports.

As a result, the trade deficit widened to $ 3,693 million during the January-April 2026 period, primarily due to the faster growth in import expenditure compared to export earnings.