Import expenditure increased to US dollars 13,718 million

Export unit value declined by 5.6 per cent y-o-y

The deficit in the trade account widened to US dollars 4,200 mn during the nine months ending September 2024 from US dollars 3,341 mn in the corresponding period of 2023, the Weekly Economic Indicators report of the Central Bank of Sri Lanka states.

“Earnings from exports increased by 6.0 per cent (year-on-year) to US dollars 9,518 mn during the nine months ending September 2024 as a result of increased earnings mainly from exports of petroleum products (111.0%), textiles and garments (2.6%), food, beverages and tobacco (19.2%), rubber products (10.7%), tea (7.0%), and coconut related products (20.0%), among others,” it states.

Further notes from the report are reproduced below.

Import expenditure increased by 11.3 per cent (year-on-year) to US dollars 13,718 mn during the nine months ending September 2024, mainly due to higher imports of textiles and textile articles (18.2%), machinery and equipment (22.9%), chemical products (25.7%), and building material (25.3%), among others.

The export unit value index declined by 5.6 per cent, (year-on-year), in September 2024 mainly due to lower prices recorded in exports of industrial goods. The import unit value index in September 2024 declined by 4.4 per cent, (year-on-year), due to lower prices recorded in intermediate goods. Accordingly, the terms of trade deteriorated by 1.2 per cent, (year-on-year) to 85.2 index points in September 2024.

The average price of tea in the Colombo auction increased to US dollars 4.09 per kg in September 2024 from US dollars 3.63 per kg in September 2023.

On year-on-year basis, Colombo Consumer Price Index (CCPI) based headline inflation remained in the negative territory for the second consecutive month, recording a deflation of 0.8 per cent in October 2024 compared to 0.5 per cent in September 2024.

Food category recorded an inflation of 1.0 per cent, while the Non-Food category recorded a deflation of 1.6 per cent. Further, the CCPI based core inflation moderated to 3.0 per cent in October 2024 from 3.3 per cent in September 2024.

In September 2024, Purchasing Managers’ Index for Construction, as reflected by the Total Activity Index, indicated a contraction in construction activities, on a month-on-month basis.

At the start of the period from 26th October to 01st November, 2024, oil prices fell on signs of de-escalation of geopolitical tensions in the Middle East. However, prices picked up again towards the end of the week on concerns about retaliatory attacks. Overall, Brent and WTI prices rose by US dollars 0.36 and US dollars 1.96 per barrel, respectively, over the period.

Weekly Average Weighted Prime Lending Rate (AWPR) for the week ending 01st November 2024 decreased by 12 bps to 9.05 per cent compared to the previous week.

The Average Weighted Call Money Rate (AWCMR) recorded as 8.55 per cent on 01st November 2024 compared to 8.57 per cent at the end of the last week.

The reserve money decreased compared to the previous week mainly due to a decrease in the currency in circulation and deposits held by the commercial banks with the Central Bank.

The total outstanding market liquidity was a surplus of Rs. 80.050 bn by 01st November 2024, compared to a surplus of Rs. 86.268 bn by the end of the last week.

The gross official reserves were provisionally estimated at US dollars 5,994 mn as at end September 2024. This includes proceeds from the People’s Bank of China (PBOC) swap arrangement, which is subject to conditionalities on usability.