ECONOMYNEXT – Sri Lanka is discussing a list of 1,161 items where the US has offered duty free access for for 70 to 80 percent of them, as part of ongoing tariff talks, Deputy Minister for Economic Development, Anil Jayantha Fernando said in a television talk show.
The US has presented the list for discussions which included 42 agricultural items, he said in an interview with Sri Lanka’s Derana Television.
Apparel was also included in the list, he said, without elaborating whether apparel was included in the duty-free list.
But before the Trump tariff Sri Lanka was already paying taxes ranging from 7.5 percent to 16.5 percent on apparel exported to the US.
Minister Jayantha he could not disclose individual items or specific details of the talks as there were diplomatic exchanges going on, but after an agreement is finalized, details will be made public.
Many imports to the US are charged low rates of around 3 to 5 percent.
Since April, Sri Lanka is paying an additional 10 percent tax on exports to the US when a 44 percent tax was deferred till July 09.
In a new tariff letter, President Donald Trump has proposed a 30 percent tax on Sri Lanka exports from August 01.
Due to diplomatic exchanges that are underway he could not reveal the items under discussion, Minister Jayantha said.
On US imports to Sri Lanka, duties were around 0 to 20 percent, excluding the so-called ‘para tariffs’ like Port and Airport Levy.
As a result, if Sri Lanka reduced the taxes, there wont be much revenue losses, Minister Jayantha said.
Sri Lanka did not have a lot of non-tariff barriers like certifications for US imports he said but that issue can also be addressed.
The US Trade Representative a few years ago raised the issue of pharmaceutical price controls, which blocked the sale of ‘original’ drugs in the country.
The US is a top exporter of maize, soybean oil and also aircraft and brands like Caterpillar, John Deer, computers and mobile phones. (Colombo/July17/2025)
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