Sri Lanka's trade deficit narrows for first time since Dec2009

The corrective economic measures taken to narrow the trade gap had yielded results, the bank said in a statement. N

"Motor vehicle imports being subject to the imposition of higher taxes since March contributed the most to the decline in expenditure on consumer goods imports," the statement said".

The registration of such vehicles had dropped by over 38 per cent in August year on year.

Tourism also helped in reduced trade deficit, as arrivals grew by 16 per cent year on year.

Inward remittances from Sri Lankan expatriates at 511 million dollars January to December represented an over 27 per cent increase

Sri Lanka