The deficit in the trade account narrowed significantly in June2019 in comparison to the corresponding month of 2018mainly due to the reduction in imports of motor vehicles and fuel. On a cumulative basis, the deficit in the trade account contracted by US dollars 2,112 million to US dollars 3,597 million during the first six months of 2019 in comparison to the corresponding period of 2018, the Central Bank said in a release yesterday.
Meanwhile, the terms of trade, which represents the relative price of imports in terms of exports, improved by 3.6per cent (year-on-year) to 114.0index points in June2019asexport prices, on average, reduced at a slower pace than the decline in import prices. However, on a cumulative basis, the terms of trade deteriorated by 1.5 per cent during the first six months of 2019 in comparison to the corresponding period of 2018, the Central bank said.
The Sri Lankan rupee appreciated by 3.0 percent against the US dollar during the year up to 20 August 2019.
Reflecting the cross-currency movements, the rupee also appreciated against other major currencies except for the Japanese yen during this period.
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