Share of imports that come from China in Sri Lanka
Sri Lanka: Share of imports that come from China was 24.3% in 2025. ◆ Volatile
Share of imports that come from China in Sri Lanka, 1948–2025
Source: International Monetary Fund (2026) – with major processing by Our World in Data. Measured in %.
Analysis
Sri Lanka recorded 24.3% for share of imports that come from china in 2025. That is the highest value across all 77 years on record.
That represents a change of up 4.2% on the previous year and up 36.9% over ten years.
Over the whole period, share of imports that come from china in Sri Lanka peaked at 24.3% in 2025 and was at its lowest, 0.0%, in 2008.
Sri Lanka ranks 50th of 206 countries on this measure, in the top quarter.
The series is highly variable year to year, so single readings are best treated with caution.
Share of imports that come from China in Sri Lanka, year by year
| Year | % | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 1948 | 0.3% | — |
| 1949 | 0.2% | -29.8% |
| 1950 | 0.3% | +15.4% |
| 1951 | 0.3% | +3.9% |
| 1952 | 2.2% | +685.2% |
| 1953 | 14.5% | +553.1% |
| 1954 | 12.6% | -13.2% |
| 1955 | 6.0% | -52.5% |
| 1956 | 9.0% | +49.8% |
| 1957 | 5.1% | -42.8% |
| 1958 | 9.5% | +83.8% |
| 1959 | 9.0% | -5.0% |
| 1960 | 7.9% | -11.9% |
| 1961 | 2.5% | -69.0% |
| 1962 | 2.8% | +14.6% |
| 1963 | 10.4% | +270.8% |
| 1964 | 12.1% | +16.5% |
| 1965 | 8.7% | -27.9% |
| 1966 | 12.1% | +38.8% |
| 1967 | 12.2% | +0.6% |
| 1968 | 13.4% | +9.6% |
| 1969 | 13.0% | -2.5% |
| 1970 | 14.4% | +10.1% |
| 1971 | 10.4% | -27.6% |
| 1972 | 8.8% | -15.2% |
| 1973 | 14.1% | +60.4% |
| 1974 | 8.5% | -39.8% |
| 1975 | 13.5% | +58.3% |
| 1976 | 1.3% | -90.3% |
| 1977 | 5.1% | +291.4% |
| 1978 | 3.3% | -34.6% |
| 1979 | 4.9% | +47.6% |
| 1980 | 2.7% | -46.1% |
| 1981 | 2.3% | -15.3% |
| 1982 | 2.5% | +12.1% |
| 1983 | 2.5% | -2.6% |
| 1984 | 2.1% | -15.6% |
| 1985 | 4.1% | +98.1% |
| 1986 | 5.0% | +22.5% |
| 1987 | 3.4% | -32.9% |
| 1988 | 5.1% | +49.6% |
| 1989 | 5.2% | +2.7% |
| 1990 | 4.4% | -15.9% |
| 1991 | 3.4% | -21.5% |
| 1992 | 3.9% | +12.8% |
| 1993 | 4.2% | +8.5% |
| 1994 | 3.8% | -9.2% |
| 1995 | 3.7% | -2.3% |
| 1996 | 3.2% | -13.4% |
| 1997 | 3.3% | +2.9% |
| 1998 | 4.0% | +19.7% |
| 1999 | 3.0% | -24.3% |
| 2000 | 4.1% | +36.4% |
| 2001 | 4.2% | +2.8% |
| 2002 | 4.4% | +4.6% |
| 2003 | 5.2% | +18.2% |
| 2004 | 5.8% | +11.8% |
| 2005 | 7.3% | +25.5% |
| 2006 | 7.8% | +7.0% |
| 2007 | 0.0% | -99.9% |
| 2008 | 0.0% | -2.0% |
| 2009 | 0.0% | +20.4% |
| 2010 | 0.0% | +5.0% |
| 2011 | 0.0% | +5.2% |
| 2012 | 6.2% | +49335.1% |
| 2013 | 16.5% | +168.8% |
| 2014 | 17.8% | +7.5% |
| 2016 | 22.2% | +25.0% |
| 2017 | 19.1% | -14.2% |
| 2018 | 18.8% | -1.5% |
| 2019 | 20.7% | +10.2% |
| 2020 | 23.0% | +11.0% |
| 2021 | 23.7% | +3.3% |
| 2022 | 20.3% | -14.7% |
| 2023 | 19.2% | -5.3% |
| 2024 | 23.3% | +21.7% |
| 2025 | 24.3% | +4.2% |
Sri Lanka compared with similar countries
- Sri Lanka's 24.3% is above the median for upper middle income countries, which is 18.5%, 1.3× the median. (57 countries reporting)
- Sri Lanka's 24.3% is above the median for South Asia, which is 20.4%, 1.2× the median. (6 countries reporting)
Biggest year-on-year movements
Years where Share of imports that come from China in Sri Lanka changed far more than this series normally does. A large move can be a real event or a change in how the figure was measured — the source note below says who published it.
| Year | Change | From | To |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2012 | +49335.1% | 0.0% | 6.2% |
| 1952 | +685.2% | 0.3% | 2.2% |
| 1953 | +553.1% | 2.2% | 14.5% |
| 1977 | +291.4% | 1.3% | 5.1% |
| 1963 | +270.8% | 2.8% | 10.4% |
| 2013 | +168.8% | 6.2% | 16.5% |
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1940s | 0.3% | 0.2% | 0.3% | 2 |
| 1950s | 6.9% | 0.3% | 14.5% | 10 |
| 1960s | 9.5% | 2.5% | 13.4% | 10 |
| 1970s | 8.4% | 1.3% | 14.4% | 10 |
| 1980s | 3.5% | 2.1% | 5.2% | 10 |
| 1990s | 3.7% | 3.0% | 4.4% | 10 |
| 2000s | 3.9% | 0.0% | 7.8% | 10 |
| 2010s | 13.5% | 0.0% | 22.2% | 9 |
| 2020s | 22.3% | 19.2% | 24.3% | 6 |
Countries ranked near Sri Lanka
More economy & growth data for Sri Lanka
- Real gdp growth, annual growth rate 314.98 % change on previous year (2024)
- Africa's Development Dynamics (AfDD) Table 04 - Annual real GDP -8.07 Percent per annum (2022)
- Africa's Development Dynamics (AfDD) Table 02 - Annual real GDP -7.82 Percent per annum (2022)
- SDRs holdings, US dollar, annual growth rate -66.71 % change on previous year (2025)
- SDRs holdings, US dollar, per unit of GDP 0 units per US$ of GDP (2025)
- SDRs holdings, US dollar, per capita 0.0483 units per person (2025)
- SDRs holdings, SDR, annual growth rate -68.3 % change on previous year (2025)
- SDRs holdings, SDR, per unit of GDP 0 units per US$ of GDP (2025)
- SDRs holdings, SDR, per capita 0.0353 units per person (2025)
- IMF holdings of currency, US dollar, annual growth rate 33.41 % change on previous year (2025)
Frequently asked questions
- What is share of imports that come from china in Sri Lanka?
- Share of imports that come from china in Sri Lanka was 24.3% in 2025, according to International Monetary Fund (2026) – with major processing by Our World in Data.
- What is the highest share of imports that come from china recorded in Sri Lanka?
- The highest recorded value was 24.3% in 2025.
- What is the lowest share of imports that come from china recorded in Sri Lanka?
- The lowest recorded value was 0.0% in 2008.
- How does Sri Lanka rank for share of imports that come from china?
- Sri Lanka ranks 50th out of 206 countries with data for 2025.
- Is share of imports that come from china rising or falling in Sri Lanka?
- Over the last ten years it is up 36.9%. The long-run trend across the full record is volatile.
- Where does this Sri Lanka data come from?
- The figures come from International Monetary Fund (2026) – with major processing by Our World in Data, published as part of Share of imports that come from China. Statizoid updates them automatically from the source API.
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About this data
Percentage of a country's total goods imports, including freight and insurance costs, that come from China.