COLOMBO– With the economy forecasted to contract further by the end of 2022, Sri Lankan exporters mainly SMEs are expecting orders to fall and job losses, a USAID and Ceylon Chamber of Commerce survey has found.
Out of 157 exporters surveyed by the Ceylon Chamber of Commerce with USAID and Partnership for Accelerating Results in Trade, National Expenditure and Revenue (PARTNER), 68% had said they expected the economy to contract moderately to severely in the second half of 2022.
Meanwhile, 47% had said they were expecting the same to happen to their export orders.
“Exporters are increasingly concerned about the implications of the expected contraction of the Sri Lankan economy in the latter half of 2022 on export orders, with SMEs particularly vulnerable to the intensifying economic crisis,” the survey said.
However, it said that larger firms have performed better in export revenue growth, capacity utilization, and sourcing of new export opportunities compared to SMEs.
The survey identifies the exporters’ main challenge as meeting orders due to fuel and power shortages and policy uncertainties. “Firms have also highlighted that the current economic situation will have a long-term negative impact on buyer confidence in Sri Lankan exports,” it said, adding that firms were also facing employee migration, with 64% saying they aren’t expecting their workforce size to grow.
Exporters have requested continuous power supply and political stability to sustain the export momentum.
However, the services sector is expecting some optimism as they were less impacted by the dollar shortage and or delay of supplies. But the sector also faces challenges such as a decrease in demand for services from Sri Lanka, lack of skilled labour and managing foreign currency inflows.
-economynext.com
Comments are closed, but trackbacks and pingbacks are open.