Summary
- Share of its imports
- 22.9%
- Value imported
- $4.4billion
- Rank among its suppliers
- 1st
- Products where it sells over 50%
- 183
- Products where it sells over 75%
- 61
- Dominated value
- $2.4billion
- Share of total imports
- 12.8%
Trend
Trend in shares
China went from 3.8% to 22.9% of what Sri Lanka buys
Share (%)
- China 22.9%
Source: CEPII BACI
Show the numbers
| Year | Value (USD millions) | Share | Rank |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1995 | 161 | 3.8% | 11 |
| 1996 | 151 | 3.8% | 10 |
| 1997 | 197 | 4.3% | 8 |
| 1998 | 293 | 6.1% | 7 |
| 1999 | 205 | 3.3% | 11 |
| 2000 | 296 | 4.1% | 10 |
| 2001 | 295 | 4.9% | 7 |
| 2002 | 294 | 4.5% | 7 |
| 2003 | 385 | 5.3% | 5 |
| 2004 | 544 | 6.3% | 4 |
| 2005 | 704 | 7.7% | 3 |
| 2006 | 856 | 7.9% | 3 |
| 2007 | 994 | 8.2% | 3 |
| 2008 | 1,257 | 8.5% | 3 |
| 2009 | 999 | 9.7% | 3 |
| 2010 | 1,383 | 10.1% | 3 |
| 2011 | 2,299 | 11% | 2 |
| 2012 | 2,779 | 14.7% | 2 |
| 2013 | 3,001 | 15.3% | 2 |
| 2014 | 3,446 | 15.1% | 2 |
| 2015 | 3,972 | 18% | 2 |
| 2016 | 4,280 | 20.5% | 2 |
| 2017 | 4,276 | 18.8% | 2 |
| 2018 | 4,252 | 21.3% | 2 |
| 2019 | 4,143 | 20.2% | 2 |
| 2020 | 3,812 | 23.1% | 1 |
| 2021 | 5,268 | 23.7% | 1 |
| 2022 | 3,615 | 19.4% | 2 |
| 2023 | 3,326 | 19.1% | 2 |
| 2024 | 4,395 | 22.9% | 1 |
Products where China sells more than half
| Product | Supplier | Share | Second | Value |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Cameras and broadcast equipment | China | 85.2%over 75% | Vietnam · 2.7% | $196 million |
| Synthetic filament fabric | China | 63.9% | Taiwan · 9.1% | $131 million |
| Synthetic filament yarn | China | 50.4% | Italy · 7.9% | $115 million |
| Electric motors and generators | China | 86.2%over 75% | United States · 2.7% | $114 million |
| Cranes | China | 95%over 75% | India · 1.3% | $112 million |
| Alloy steel sheet | China | 99.1%over 75% | Singapore · 0.58% | $98 million |
| Synthetic staple fiber fabric | China | 72.1% | India · 8.3% | $81 million |
| Computers | China | 72.2% | Malaysia · 8.7% | $77 million |
| Transformers and power supplies | China | 75.7%over 75% | India · 7.1% | $76 million |
| Coated flat steel | China | 69.6% | South Korea · 15.8% | $73 million |
| Lamps and light fittings | China | 91.8%over 75% | India · 3% | $52 million |
| Tulle and lace | China | 60.2% | Italy · 13.3% | $47 million |
| Monitors and projectors | China | 69.3% | Vietnam · 12.8% | $46 million |
| Vitamins | China | 82.3%over 75% | India · 6.8% | $43 million |
| Lightweight polyester-cotton fabric | China | 59.8% | Pakistan · 11.6% | $41 million |
| Plastic-coated fabric | China | 69% | South Korea · 5.6% | $37 million |
| Aluminum sheet | China | 72.9% | South Korea · 18.1% | $37 million |
| Steel structures | China | 65.7% | India · 22.2% | $36 million |
| Steel tanks and containers | China | 76.8%over 75% | Thailand · 6.5% | $35 million |
| Rayon fabric | China | 57% | India · 17.9% | $34 million |
| Air pumps, compressors and fans | China | 51.8% | India · 19.5% | $28 million |
| Bras and corsets | China | 67.5% | Hong Kong · 12.6% | $28 million |
| Other iron or steel articles | China | 60.4% | India · 12.8% | $27 million |
| Food processing machinery | China | 69.7% | India · 9.2% | $26 million |
| Silk fabric | China | 96.8%over 75% | Italy · 2.8% | $26 million |
| Heavy blended cotton fabric | China | 51.2% | India · 24% | $26 million |
| Diodes, transistors and solar cells | China | 53.3% | India · 36.5% | $25 million |
| Linen fabric | China | 73.8% | India · 18.1% | $25 million |
| Knitted plush and terry fabric | China | 64.2% | India · 10% | $24 million |
| Harvesters and farm machinery | China | 77.8%over 75% | Thailand · 13.5% | $20 million |
and 153 more
A product has a dominant supplier when a single country sells more than 50% of what is bought of it; we flag it separately above 75%.
Are there other suppliers in the world?
- China sells 46.2% of what the world exports of cameras and broadcast equipment; next come Vietnam (13.1%), Taiwan (4.4%) and India (4.3%). The rest of the world exported 1,731.2 times what Sri Lanka buys from China.
- China sells 61.9% of what the world exports of synthetic filament fabric; next come Taiwan (4.8%), South Korea (4.5%) and India (3.3%). The rest of the world exported 79.8 times what Sri Lanka buys from China.
- China sells 42.8% of what the world exports of synthetic filament yarn; next come India (5.1%), Vietnam (5%) and Turkey (4.1%). The rest of the world exported 93.1 times what Sri Lanka buys from China.
- China sells 25% of what the world exports of electric motors and generators; next come Germany (11%), United States (7%) and Mexico (6.6%). The rest of the world exported 483.3 times what Sri Lanka buys from China.
- China sells 34.4% of what the world exports of cranes; next come Germany (12.3%), Japan (8.2%) and Italy (7.4%). The rest of the world exported 102.2 times what Sri Lanka buys from China.
- China sells 16.4% of what the world exports of alloy steel sheet; next come Japan (14.7%), Germany (11%) and South Korea (7.9%). The rest of the world exported 268.4 times what Sri Lanka buys from China.
- China sells 44% of what the world exports of synthetic staple fiber fabric; next come United States (6.5%), Turkey (6.3%) and Italy (5.2%). The rest of the world exported 24.7 times what Sri Lanka buys from China.
- China sells 38.7% of what the world exports of computers; next come Taiwan (14.2%), Mexico (12.6%) and Vietnam (7%). The rest of the world exported 3,361.7 times what Sri Lanka buys from China.
- China sells 34.6% of what the world exports of transformers and power supplies; next come Germany (7%), Mexico (4.5%) and Japan (3.9%). The rest of the world exported 1,313.5 times what Sri Lanka buys from China.
- China sells 27.6% of what the world exports of coated flat steel; next come South Korea (10.3%), Germany (7.2%) and Belgium (4.8%). The rest of the world exported 572.8 times what Sri Lanka buys from China.
Exports from the rest of the world already have buyers; the figure shows scale, not availability.
Seen from China
Sri Lanka is China’s 83rd-largest customer, with 0.12% of its exports.
Links
Sources and method
Sources and licenses
- CEPII BACI · Licence Ouverte Etalab 2.0
- Natural Earth · Public domain
Methodology
The data come from CEPII BACI (Etalab 2.0 licence), which reconciles what the exporting and the importing country report, in current USD, FOB. Data up to 2024.
Dependence is the share of a country’s imports (or exports) that each partner accounts for. It does not measure whether a product has a substitute or how much it would cost to change supplier.
The concentration index (HHI) adds up the square of each partner’s share, in percent: it runs from 0 to 10,000. Its equivalent is 10,000 ÷ HHI, the number of partners of the same size that would give that value.
Products are HS4 headings of the 1992 nomenclature (some combine different goods), with a floor of $1 million per product and country.
The EU is the 27 current members in every year; the United Kingdom is outside the EU throughout the series.
Re-exports: countries that act as redistribution hubs carry their notice and the figures are not corrected.