Sri Lanka records increased orders in industries sector in June
Sri Lanka’s Central Bank has reportedly noted that driven by a strong recovery in new orders, manufacturing activities have recovered to an extent during June 2021 from the adverse impacts of the third wave of the Covid-19 pandemic.
“The new orders, especially in the manufacture of food and beverages, increased significantly. The production, employment, and stock of purchases sub-indices, mainly related to the food and beverages sector, edged up compared to the previous month yet remained below the neutral threshold level, owing to the disturbances from the third wave of the pandemic. However, the textile and clothing sector indicated a deterioration in June, as reflected from the further decline in new orders, employment, and stock of purchases sub-indices,” the Central Bank of Sri Lanka (CBSL) has stated.
Accordingly, the manufacturing purchasing managers’ index (PMI) has recorded an index value of 50.4 in June 2021 with an increase of 8.3 index points from the previous month. All the other sub-indices, except suppliers’ delivery time, have reportedly edged up from the previous month.
Meanwhile, expectations for manufacturing activities for the next three months are expected to significantly increase with the anticipation that economic activities in the country would normalise in the coming months supported by the rapid rollout of the Covid-19 vaccination across the country, particularly in the Western Province.
OSL take:
Sri Lanka’s industries sector has noted a considerable increase in orders. The country’s manufacturing and exports sectors have shown a growth momentum despite challenges posed by the global Covid 19 pandemic. The country’s economic activities are currently returning to normalcy with the easing of travel restrictions following the accelerated Covid 19 vaccination programme. Sri Lanka’s economy has shown great resilience to external and internal challenges through the years and is once again on the path to recovery. The island with it’s ongoing development programme has made Sri Lanka fast become a business hub in the South Asian region. The country’s geographical positioning in the Indian ocean and the many trade agreements as well as trade concessions have also helped boost Sri Lanka’s positioning as a business destination in the region. Foreign businesses/investors could therefore explore business/investment opportunities in Sri Lanka.
| Article Code : | VBS/AT/20210720/Z_4 |