COLOMBO, Sept 24 (NNN-XINHUA) – Sri Lanka will relax restrictions imposed on imported goods, except vehicles, next month, a state minister said, yesterday.
Addressing a conference, State Minister of Finance, Shehan Semasinghe, said, import restrictions are currently maintained on 600 HS codes (Harmonised System codes).
The relaxation of imports will help price stabilisation, Semasinghe said.
The prices of some goods have increased due to import restrictions, because there is not enough supply to meet the demand, he said.
The Sri Lankan government restricted the import of 1,465 items in Aug, 2022, due to the economic crisis, but lifted restrictions on most of those items on several separate occasions.
Official data show that Sri Lanka’s total import expenditure in 2022 amounted to over 18 billion U.S. dollars, recording a decline of 11.4 percent from 2021.– NNN-XINHUA
