India has reaffirmed that it remains Sri Lanka’s largest trading partner, responding after a Chinese Embassy spokesperson in India claimed China had become Sri Lanka’s “No.1 trading partner.”
Indian High Commissioner to Sri Lanka Santosh Jha issued the clarification by sharing trade figures from India’s Department of Commerce, stating that India-Sri Lanka bilateral trade turnover reached US$ 6.4 billion in 2025.
The response came after Chinese Embassy spokesperson Yu Jing cited Sri Lanka Central Bank data claiming China-Sri Lanka trade had reached US$ 5.5 billion in 2025.
According to the figures shared by Jha, Sri Lankan exports to India increased from US$ 689 million in 2020 to US$ 1.53 billion in 2025, while total bilateral trade stood at US$ 6.407 billion last year.
He also noted that India is now the second-largest destination for Sri Lankan exports and said exports from Sri Lanka to India have increased more than 30 times since the Indo-Lanka Free Trade Agreement came into effect in 2000. (Newswire)
