Sri Lanka’s GDP growth for 2025 expected at 3.1% - FinMin officials

Sri Lanka’s GDP growth for 2025 is projected to be around 3.1%, according to officials attached to the Ministry of the Finance.

This was revealed by Finance Ministry officials during a meeting of the Committee on Public Finance in Parliament.

The Committee on Public Finance reviewed Sri Lanka’s income, expenditure, and debt conditions during the first half of 2025.

This took place at a meeting of the committee held in Parliament under the chairmanship of Member of Parliament Dr. Harsha de Silva.

During the meeting, the Chairman questioned whether the expected economic growth target for this year can be achieved based on current data.

In response, Finance Ministry officials said that it can be assumed that economic growth will be around 3.1% this year.

Accordingly, the government has reported a strong fiscal performance for the first half of 2025 compared to the total revenue for the first six months of 2024, exceeding the mid-year target, officials from the Ministry of Finance informed the Committee.

Presenting data, Finance Ministry officials pointed out that the total revenue collected from the half-yearly estimated income of Rs. 2,241 billion from January to June 2025 was Rs. 2,318 billion, which exceeded the half-yearly estimate by 3%.

Meanwhile, the total government expenditure in the first half of 2025 was Rs. 3,467 billion, an increase of Rs. 367 billion compared to the expenditure in the first six months of 2024.

The main reason for this increase has been debt servicing, which was Rs. 1,984 billion in the first half of 2025.

Recurring expenditure on essential public services, including public sector salaries, pensions, social security programs such as ‘Aswesuma’ and ‘Samurdhi’, has also increased, Finance Ministry officials said.

Furthermore, the Sri Lanka Customs Department has recorded a revenue of Rs. 996 billion between January and June 2025, recording a growth of 47% compared to the year 2024 (January - June).

The revenue received from the import of automobiles contributed significantly to this growth, which had received Rs. 429 billion.

Since the opening of vehicles for import, 220,026 vehicles have been imported into Sri Lanka so far, of which 154,537 vehicles have been cleared by Sri Lanka Customs, the Finance Ministry officials pointed out.