Sri Lanka: Imports of goods and services (annual % growth)

Key figures

Over five years it is up 30.91 percentage points from -20.07% in 2020. Since 1961 it is up 20.73 percentage points from -9.88% in 1961. The World Bank has no value for 6 of the years in between; the chart leaves those gaps open rather than joining across them.

What the numbers say

In 2025, Sri Lanka's imports of goods and services (annual % growth) fell 10.72 percentage points on 2024 (from 21.57% to 10.84%).

Across the 30 yearly changes before that (1988 to 2024), the average change was +0.18 percentage points and a typical year strayed about 12.08 percentage points from that (the standard deviation). This year's change was 0.9 standard deviations below that average, so it was an ordinary year: it sits within the range of normal year-to-year movement.

On record, the biggest yearly rise was 42.61 percentage points in 1978 and the biggest yearly fall was 26.22 percentage points in 1981. The numbers show how large and when, not why; for the cause, look at what happened in that country in those years.

From 2016 to 2025 there is no clear straight-line trend: a straight line explains 4% of the movement over 10 observed years, so the value is moving around more than it is heading anywhere.

Worked out from the yearly values above. How the checks work: standard deviation, z-scores and straight-line trends.

How it compares

In 2025, Sri Lanka had the 25th highest value of the 128 economies reporting that year. Higher is not always better: for some indicators the lowest value is the one to aim for. See the full ranking.

Closest to Sri Lanka in the 2025 ranking

• El Salvador — 21st of 128: 11.24%
• Nicaragua — 22nd of 128: 11.11%
• Cameroon — 23rd of 128: 11.09%
• Chile — 25th of 128: 10.51%
• Tunisia — 26th of 128: 10.09%
• Switzerland — 27th of 128: 9.7%

What this measures

Imports of goods includes change in the economic ownership of goods from non-residents to residents of the compiling economy, irrespective of physical movement of goods across national borders. Imports of services includes services provided by non-residents to residents. This indicator denotes the percentage change over each previous year of the constant price (base year 2015) series in United States dollars.

Regional and income-group figures are computed by the World Bank as a weighted average.

All 59 values

Imports of goods and services (annual % growth) in nearby economies

• Bangladesh — 6.77% (2025)
• Bhutan — 4.09% (2024)
• India — 6.4% (2025)
• Maldives — 12.38% (2024)
• Nepal — 6.29% (2025)

More economic policy & debt data for Sri Lanka

• Agriculture, forestry, and fishing, value added (current US$) — US$9.1 billion (2025)
• Agriculture, forestry, and fishing, value added (current LCU) — 2.74 trillion (2025)
• Agriculture, forestry, and fishing, value added (constant 2015 US$) — US$6.84 billion (2025)
• Agriculture, forestry, and fishing, value added (constant LCU) — 929.67 billion (2025)
• Agriculture, forestry, and fishing, value added (% of GDP) — 8.36% (2025)
• Manufacturing, value added (current US$) — US$18.63 billion (2025)
• Manufacturing, value added (current LCU) — 5.61 trillion (2025)
• Manufacturing, value added (% of GDP) — 17.12% (2025)
• Industry, including construction, value added (current US$)

Reading data like this

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Questions people ask

What is Sri Lanka's imports of goods and services (annual % growth)?

10.84% in 2025, according to the World Bank (World Development Indicators).

How has it changed since 1961?

It is up 20.73 percentage points from -9.88% in 1961. The highest value was 36.92% in 1978 and the lowest -20.07% in 2020.

How does Sri Lanka rank?

25th highest of 128 economies with data for 2025.

Is the latest change in imports of goods and services (annual % growth) unusual for Sri Lanka?

In 2025, Sri Lanka's imports of goods and services (annual % growth) fell 10.72 percentage points on 2024 (from 21.57% to 10.84%). Across the 30 yearly changes before that (1988 to 2024), the average change was +0.18 percentage points and a typical year strayed about 12.08 percentage points from that (the standard deviation). This year's change was 0.9 standard deviations below that average, so it was an ordinary year: it sits within the range of normal year-to-year movement.

Source

World Bank, World Development Indicators, indicator NE.IMP.GNFS.KD.ZG, licensed CC BY 4.0. Original source: Country official statistics, National Statistical Offices (NSOs); National Accounts data files, Central Banks; Staff estimates, World Bank (WB) Figures are fetched from the World Bank API and refreshed monthly; see the series on data.worldbank.org. The full definition and method are in the World Bank's metadata glossary. Comparisons use the same World Bank release.

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