Merchandise imports from low- and middle-income economies within in Sri Lanka
Sri Lanka: Merchandise imports from low- and middle-income economies within was 21.6% in 2023. ▲ Rising
Merchandise imports from low- and middle-income economies within in Sri Lanka, 1960–2023
Source: Staff estimates, World Bank (WB). Measured in % of total merchandise imports.
Analysis
In 2023, merchandise imports from low- and middle-income economies within in Sri Lanka stood at 21.6%.
The figure is down 26.1% on the previous year and up 8.9% over ten years.
Over the whole period, merchandise imports from low- and middle-income economies within in Sri Lanka peaked at 30.7% in 2007 and was at its lowest, 5.3%, in 1982.
That places Sri Lanka 72nd out of 203 countries with data for 2023, putting it in the middle of the range.
The long-run direction has been consistently rising across the 64 years of available data.
Merchandise imports from low- and middle-income economies within in Sri Lanka, year by year
| Year | % of total merchandise imports | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 1960 | 17.0% | — |
| 1961 | 15.7% | -7.8% |
| 1962 | 12.7% | -19.4% |
| 1963 | 13.9% | +9.7% |
| 1964 | 12.6% | -9.3% |
| 1965 | 14.7% | +16.6% |
| 1966 | 12.8% | -13.2% |
| 1967 | 10.6% | -17.1% |
| 1968 | 10.7% | +1.5% |
| 1969 | 14.0% | +30.7% |
| 1970 | 14.6% | +4.1% |
| 1971 | 18.2% | +24.4% |
| 1972 | 16.5% | -9.0% |
| 1973 | 12.1% | -26.8% |
| 1974 | 12.5% | +3.1% |
| 1975 | 7.6% | -39.2% |
| 1976 | 10.7% | +40.4% |
| 1977 | 11.4% | +6.9% |
| 1978 | 10.9% | -4.2% |
| 1979 | 13.0% | +19.4% |
| 1980 | 6.7% | -48.8% |
| 1981 | 5.4% | -18.7% |
| 1982 | 5.3% | -1.5% |
| 1983 | 7.4% | +38.3% |
| 1984 | 7.2% | -3.0% |
| 1985 | 6.5% | -9.3% |
| 1986 | 8.1% | +24.0% |
| 1987 | 7.1% | -12.0% |
| 1988 | 8.4% | +18.4% |
| 1989 | 6.2% | -25.8% |
| 1990 | 7.2% | +15.4% |
| 1991 | 10.5% | +45.5% |
| 1992 | 13.3% | +27.3% |
| 1993 | 11.7% | -12.4% |
| 1994 | 12.0% | +2.5% |
| 1995 | 12.6% | +5.5% |
| 1996 | 14.1% | +11.9% |
| 1997 | 12.1% | -14.0% |
| 1998 | 11.4% | -6.1% |
| 1999 | 11.7% | +2.9% |
| 2000 | 11.6% | -1.4% |
| 2001 | 13.6% | +18.0% |
| 2002 | 16.0% | +17.2% |
| 2003 | 18.7% | +16.7% |
| 2004 | 20.2% | +8.5% |
| 2005 | 23.0% | +13.7% |
| 2006 | 23.6% | +2.7% |
| 2007 | 30.7% | +30.0% |
| 2008 | 25.8% | -15.9% |
| 2009 | 24.0% | -7.1% |
| 2010 | 27.2% | +13.4% |
| 2011 | 27.6% | +1.5% |
| 2012 | 24.7% | -10.3% |
| 2013 | 19.8% | -19.9% |
| 2014 | 22.3% | +12.8% |
| 2015 | 30.7% | +37.3% |
| 2016 | 22.1% | -28.0% |
| 2017 | 24.4% | +10.4% |
| 2018 | 22.0% | -9.7% |
| 2019 | 21.8% | -0.9% |
| 2020 | 21.8% | -0.3% |
| 2021 | 24.5% | +12.4% |
| 2022 | 29.2% | +19.2% |
| 2023 | 21.6% | -26.1% |
Sri Lanka compared with similar countries
- Sri Lanka's 21.6% is above the median for upper middle income countries, which is 16.6%, 1.3× the median. (59 countries reporting)
- Sri Lanka's 21.6% is above the median for South Asia, which is 21.1%, 1.0× the median. (6 countries reporting)
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1960s | 13.5% | 10.6% | 17.0% | 10 |
| 1970s | 12.8% | 7.6% | 18.2% | 10 |
| 1980s | 6.8% | 5.3% | 8.4% | 10 |
| 1990s | 11.7% | 7.2% | 14.1% | 10 |
| 2000s | 20.7% | 11.6% | 30.7% | 10 |
| 2010s | 24.3% | 19.8% | 30.7% | 10 |
| 2020s | 24.2% | 21.6% | 29.2% | 4 |
Countries ranked near Sri Lanka
- 69 Azerbaijan 23.4% compare
- 70 Peru 23.1% compare
- 71 Syrian Arab Republic 21.7% compare
- 73 Ecuador 21.5% compare
- 74 Afghanistan 21.0% compare
- 75 Maldives 20.7% compare
More private sector data for Sri Lanka
- Merchandise trade 32.2% (2025)
- Food imports 15.3% (2024)
- Manufactures imports 59.7% (2024)
- Merchandise imports 21.48 billion current US$ (2025)
- Food exports 27.3% (2024)
- Manufactures exports 66.0% (2024)
- Merchandise exports 13.58 billion current US$ (2025)
- Merchandise exports (current US$), per capita 624.24 current US$ per person (2025)
- Merchandise exports (current US$), per unit of GDP 0.1248 current US$ per US$ of GDP (2025)
- Merchandise exports (current US$), annual growth rate 6.33 % change on previous year (2025)
Frequently asked questions
- What is merchandise imports from low- and middle-income economies within in Sri Lanka?
- Merchandise imports from low- and middle-income economies within in Sri Lanka was 21.6% in 2023, according to Staff estimates, World Bank (WB).
- What is the highest merchandise imports from low- and middle-income economies within recorded in Sri Lanka?
- The highest recorded value was 30.7% in 2007.
- What is the lowest merchandise imports from low- and middle-income economies within recorded in Sri Lanka?
- The lowest recorded value was 5.3% in 1982.
- How does Sri Lanka rank for merchandise imports from low- and middle-income economies within?
- Sri Lanka ranks 72nd out of 203 countries with data for 2023.
- Is merchandise imports from low- and middle-income economies within rising or falling in Sri Lanka?
- Over the last ten years it is up 8.9%. The long-run trend across the full record is rising.
- Where does this Sri Lanka data come from?
- The figures come from Staff estimates, World Bank (WB), published as part of Merchandise imports from low- and middle-income economies within region (% of total merchandise imports). Statizoid updates them automatically from the source API.
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About this data
Merchandise imports from low- and middle-income economies within region are the sum of merchandise imports by the reporting economy from other low- and middle-income economies in the same World Bank region according to the World Bank classification of economies. Data are as a percentage of total merchandise imports by the economy. Data are computed only if at least half of the economies in the partner country group had non-missing data. No figures are shown for high-income economies, because they are a separate category in the World Bank classification of economies.