General

Sri Lanka saw a rise in apparel exports in December 2025, mainly due to higher demand from the United States, United Kingdom, and European Union. These three markets contributed the most to the increase, balancing out a drop in shipments to other regions, as reported by the Joint Apparel Association Forum (JAAF). Exports to the US climbed by 6.49% to reach $178.29 million compared to December 2024. Sales to the EU also increased by 6.76% to $141 million, and exports to the UK rose by 12.95% to $55.12 million. Meanwhile, exports to other markets fell by 4.06% to $72.8 million. Overall, December's exports were $23.03 million higher than the same month in 2024. For the entire year from January to December 2025, Sri Lanka’s total apparel and textile exports hit $5.02 billion, marking a 5.42% rise from $4.76 billion in 2024, an increase of $258.18 million year-on-year. When including fabric exports valued at $526.33 million, the total export value for the sector reached $5.51 billion in 2025. Over the twelve months, the EU showed the strongest annual growth, with exports rising by 12.48% to $1.58 billion from $1.40 billion in 2024. Shipments to the US grew by 2.15% to $1.95 billion, while exports to the UK remained stable at $679.66 million, a slight increase of 0.74% compared to the previous year. Exports to other destinations increased by 4.80% to $815.78 million.