| Study Period | 2019 - 2030 |
| Base Year For Estimation | 2024 |
| Forecast Data Period | 2025 - 2030 |
| Market Size (2025) | USD 8.17 Billion |
| Market Size (2030) | USD 10.43 Billion |
| CAGR (2025 - 2030) | 5.01 % |
| Market Concentration | Low |
Major Players
*Disclaimer: Major Players sorted in no particular order |
Sri Lanka Freight And Logistics Market Analysis
The Sri Lanka Freight And Logistics Market size is estimated at USD 8.17 billion in 2025, and is expected to reach USD 10.43 billion by 2030, at a CAGR of 5.01% during the forecast period (2025-2030).
- Growth in the e-commerce segment, higher internet penetration in the masses, and the latest technological innovations in the sector are the key driving factors in the market.
- The country's strategic location among the top air navigation and sea routes within the Southern Asian region has made Sri Lanka a lucrative destination for developing logistics. The COVID-19 pandemic impacted every sector. However, the pandemic accelerated online purchasing, which positively affected the industry's growth and increased its market share.
- During the last five years, Colombo Port has been ranked among the Top 50 World Container Ports above other South Asia ports by the World Shipping Council based on the volume of the containers handled.
- The Sri Lankan logistics sector contributes around 2.5% of the nation's GDP (gross domestic product), which represents about USD 2 billion, and the industry provides full-time direct employment to over 40,000 people. In addition to expanding its seaports, the country has the highest road density in South Asia, with around 174 km of roads per 100 sq km of land, connecting all major ports and airports.
- The growing recognition as a marine engineering hub in the South Asian region and the increasing capacity for offshore engineering has also benefitted the country to get more reputation as an emerging logistics hub providing a complete suite of logistic services.
- Sri Lanka aims to become a multimodal logistics hub by providing integrated services and facilities by developing physical, telecommunication, and information technology infrastructure between the air and seaport facilities in the future.
- Entrepót trade or the re-export trade involves importing goods from one country and re-exporting to another, with or without any additional processing or repackaging. Goods are exempt from duties at the point of import and re-export. The country has designated free ports and bonded areas, including Colombo Port, Hambantota Port, Mattala Airport, Katunayake EPZ, Koggala EPZ, Mirijjawila EPZ, and Colombo Airport Cargo Terminal to carry out entrepot trade.
- With the introduction of the commercial hub regulations through amendments made to the Finance Act No 12 of 2012 of Sri Lanka in the year 2013, a wide range of possibilities for entrepot trade in Sri Lanka, namely;
- Entrepót Trade under the Commercial Hub Regulations targeting foreign investors coming under the purview of the BOI, Sri Lanka.
- Entrepót Trade under the Customs Ordinance without entitlements to all of the benefits under Commercial Hub Regulations for local traders.
Sri Lanka Freight And Logistics Market Trends
Increase in Sea Freight Transport
The deep-water coastline close to Indian Ocean Shipping Lanes makes the Hambantota port add a unique geographical factor that most of its neighboring ports lack. It is helping it handle the world's largest container ships and supertankers.
With a strong base of air and sea freight transport segments, Sri Lanka's freight and logistics market has been expanding its business. Colombo Port of Sri Lanka alone can handle around 20 million TEUs per annum, registers a throughput of more than 8 million TEUs per annum, and has been serving 33 major shipping lines.
The timely completion of the ambitious Colombo Port Expansion Project would increase the container handling capacity to 12 million TEUs per year and become one of the largest container ports in the world. In April 2023, Sri Lanka launched the project to build the largest commercial and logistics complex in South Asia at the Port of Colombo with an investment of USD 392 million.
The investment in the project is expected to bring much-needed foreign investment into Sri Lanka. The construction of the complex is expected to be completed by the end of 2025. Moreover, the project will also improve the operational efficiency of the Port of Colombo and introduce leading-edge technology and innovation.
Moreover, in August 2023, Chinese state-owned firm China Merchants Group (CMG) announced that it planned to construct a logistics complex in Sri Lanka with a USD 392 million investment. Hence, growing investments in the Port of Colombo are expected to drive the sea freight transport segment during the study period.
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Improving Export Performance
As reported by WTO, in 2022, goods with a value of around 13.11 billion U.S. dollars were exported from Sri Lanka. Merchandise exports in the first half of 2022 increased by 12.4% compared to the same period in 2021, which included major product divisions other than teas, spices, and concentrates.
Apparel and textile exports increased by 19.73% in the period from January 2022 to June to USD 2,967.39 million compared to the same period in 2021. Excluding ready-made clothing accessories (-8.7%), yarns (-21.38%), and textile flooring (-3.28%), exports of other sub-categories of the clothing and textiles sector increased. From January to June 2022, export earnings from coconuts and coconut-based products increased by 12% to USD 434.34 million.
Due to the improved export performance of liquid coconut milk, coconut cream, coco peat, mattress fiber, activated carbon, coconut oil, and coconuts, coconut-based exports increased for the period January to June 2022. Meanwhile, revenue from exports of electrical and electronic components (EEC) increased by 12.96% to USD 228.12 million in the period January to June 2022 compared to the corresponding period in 2021. Exports of insulated wire to the United States increased by 18.68%, i.e., USD 40.54 million for the period January-June 2022, compared to the same period last year.
Moreover, during the period from January to June 2022, exports of switches, circuit boards and panels, transformers, and other electrical and electronic products increased by 8.29%, 18.87%, and 9.14%, respectively, compared to the same period last year. Increased seafood export revenues from January to June 2022 increased by 33.64% compared to 2021 to USD 142.17 million due to improved performance in all sub-categories except lobster.
Frozen fish (20.97%), fresh fish (70.51%), and shrimp (86.04%). In addition, revenue from ornamental fish exports increased by 51.49% to USD 10.15 million in the period from January to June 2022. However, tea export earnings for the period January to June 2022 decreased by 11.25% compared to the corresponding period in 2021 to USD 577.38 million.
Export earnings of rubber and finished rubber products for January-June 2022 decreased by 0.64% compared to the same period in 2021 to USD 516.62 million. However, during the period January to June 2022, exports of pneumatic and reclaimed rubber tires and hoses increased by 8.45% compared to the same period in 2021. Hence, increasing exports from Sri Lanka is expected to drive market growth during the study period.
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Sri Lanka Freight And Logistics Industry Overview
The report covers major players operating in Sri Lanka's freight and logistics market. The market is highly fragmented and competitive, with large companies claiming significant market share. The freight and logistics market in Sri Lanka is growing with the rising number of domestic players.
The major players include MIT Cargo (Pvt.) Ltd. and Freight Links International (Pvt.) Ltd., APL Logistics Lanka Pvt. Ltd., Ceva Logistics, and Network Cargo Services Ceylon (Pvt.) Limited.
Sri Lanka Freight And Logistics Market Leaders
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MIT Cargo (Pvt) Ltd
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Freight Links International (Pvt) Ltd
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APL Logistics Lanka Pvt Ltd
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Ceva Logistics
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Network Cargo Services Ceylon (Pvt) Limited
- *Disclaimer: Major Players sorted in no particular order
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Sri Lanka Freight And Logistics Market News
- February 2023: In a bid to expand the Trincomalee Port, the Sri Lanka Ports Authority (SLPA) is expected to invest to build a warehouse and administrative building and add several other infrastructures to it, announced the Minister of Ports and Shipping of Srilanka. The Jetty would be deeper and would initiate programs to attract cruise and passenger vessels to the harbor as well. The Trincomalee Port has made profits in the recent past which would be plowed in to invest to add these infrastructures.
- February 2023: The Trincomalee port, the fifth largest natural harbor in the world, received a JPY 1 billion (USD 7.52 million) night navigation operations facility from Japan. The project includes a state-of-the-art Vessel Traffic Management System, Radar Equipment, Lighthouse Equipment, 16 Navigation Buoys, two Mooring Buoys, two 400KV Generators, 14 Fire Pumps with machinery, and a Pilot Vessel provided by the Japan International Cooperation System (JICS) with the assistance of the Government and the People of Japan.
Sri Lanka Freight And Logistics Industry Segmentation
Freight refers to the transportation of goods through air, rail, and roadways. Logistics refers to the overall process of managing how resources are acquired, stored, and transported to their destination.
Sri Lanka's freight and logistics market is segmented by end-user industry (manufacturing and automotive, oil and gas, mining, and quarrying, agriculture, fishing, forestry, construction, and distributive trade) and by function (freight transport, warehousing, freight forwarding, and value-added services).
The Sri Lankan freight and logistics market report offers the market size and forecast value (USD) for all the above segments.
The report provides a comprehensive background analysis of the Sri Lankan freight and logistics market, covering current market trends, market dynamics, technological updates, and detailed information on various segments and the industry's competitive landscape. Additionally, the COVID-19 impact has been incorporated and considered during the study.
| By End User Industry | Manufacturing and Automotive | ||
| Oil and Gas, Mining, and Quarrying | |||
| Agriculture, Fishing, and Forestry | |||
| Construction | |||
| Distributive Trade | |||
| By Function | Freight Transport | Road | |
| Rail | |||
| Air | |||
| Ocean/Sea | |||
| Warehousing | |||
| Freight Forwarding | |||
| Value Added Services | |||
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Sri Lanka Freight and Logistics Market Research FAQs
How big is the Sri Lanka Freight And Logistics Market?
The Sri Lanka Freight And Logistics Market size is expected to reach USD 8.17 billion in 2025 and grow at a CAGR of 5.01% to reach USD 10.43 billion by 2030.
What is the current Sri Lanka Freight And Logistics Market size?
In 2025, the Sri Lanka Freight And Logistics Market size is expected to reach USD 8.17 billion.
Who are the key players in Sri Lanka Freight And Logistics Market?
MIT Cargo (Pvt) Ltd, Freight Links International (Pvt) Ltd, APL Logistics Lanka Pvt Ltd, Ceva Logistics and Network Cargo Services Ceylon (Pvt) Limited are the major companies operating in the Sri Lanka Freight And Logistics Market.
What years does this Sri Lanka Freight And Logistics Market cover, and what was the market size in 2024?
In 2024, the Sri Lanka Freight And Logistics Market size was estimated at USD 7.76 billion. The report covers the Sri Lanka Freight And Logistics Market historical market size for years: 2019, 2020, 2021, 2022, 2023 and 2024. The report also forecasts the Sri Lanka Freight And Logistics Market size for years: 2025, 2026, 2027, 2028, 2029 and 2030.
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Logistics in Sri Lanka Industry Report
Statistics for the 2025 Sri Lanka Freight And Logistics market share, size and revenue growth rate, created by Mordor Intelligence™ Industry Reports. Sri Lanka Freight And Logistics analysis includes a market forecast outlook for 2025 to 2030 and historical overview. Get a sample of this industry analysis as a free report PDF download.
