Tile importers and manufacturers discuss industry’s way forward with Treasury Secy.
„Requests govt. to revoke restrictions on tile and bathware imports
Meeting’s specific outcomes remain vague
Treasury Secretary S.R. Attygalle on March 1 met with members of Tile Importers Association and local tile manufacturers to discuss the industry’s way forward.
Currently, the government has imposed stringent restrictions on tile and bathware imports to safeguard the currency and the country’s reserve position. Import substitution is also a large part of the government’s economic policy. “With a request by tile and bathware importers to revoke the said restrictions, the Treasury Secretary, S.R. Attygalle, met the Tile Importers Association along with the local manufactures to discuss a way forward to facilitate a healthy level of imports while nurturing local manufacturers.
The meeting was successfully concluded on March 1st, with all parties agreeing on decisions taken for the future of the industry,” a statement issued to media said.
However, the statement remained vague on the specific outcomes of the meeting.
Apart from importers, tile and bathware manufacturers also import such products to cater to various customer segments based on different price points.
Sri Lanka’s tiles and bathware manufacturing industry currently consists of three local large-scale tile manufacturers, and seven bathware manufacturers with a current combined annual production capacity of 17 million sqm of tiles and approximately 700,000 bathware pieces.
Further plans to increase the tile production capacity by another 3.5million sqm this year will result in a total local production output to 20.5 million sqm by mid 2021.
Being a key contributor to the local economy and government revenue, these large-scale local manufacturers have invested over Rs.35 billion throughout the years, paying over Rs.5.5 billion in government taxes a year. At present these manufacturers employ over 7,500 Sri Lankans.
The local industry is well-equipped with the latest manufacturing technology that’s among the best in the world, capable of producing any high-quality tile and bathware across a range of different sizes, designs, surface finishes and variations that are on par with global leaders of the industry.