The Joint Apparel Association Forum (JAAF) has said the depreciation of the Sri Lankan rupee must be examined against wider global pressures, including the West Asia conflict, sharply higher fuel prices and rising shipping costs, and is not a sign that the local economy is underperforming.
In a statement issued Tuesday, the apparel industry body said the current rupee weakness was a “global and regional phenomenon, unlike in 2022, when Sri Lanka’s exchange rate pressure was driven by a domestic economic crisis.”
JAAF cited comparative depreciation figures against the US dollar: the Sri Lankan rupee has fallen 4.8 per cent, the Indian rupee 6.4 per cent, the Nepalese rupee 6.2 per cent and the Indonesian rupiah 5.2 per cent.
“The current movement of the rupee must be understood within the correct context. This is not a Sri Lanka-specific situation. Global factors, including instability in the Middle East, higher fuel costs and rising shipping costs, are placing pressure on currencies across emerging and developed economies alike,” JAAF Chairman Felix Fernando said.
The position echoes recent comments by Central Bank Governor Dr. Nandalal Weerasinghe, who has argued that exchange-rate movement alone cannot be used as the sole measure of economic health and has framed the slide in the same regional comparison.
Fernando added that a weaker rupee, if managed with discipline, could actually support export competitiveness. “For export sectors, such as apparel, a more competitive exchange rate will make exports more competitive, thereby helping protect jobs, strengthen foreign exchange earnings and support the wider economy,” he said.
JAAF said Sri Lanka’s focus should be on maintaining confidence, avoiding speculation and supporting industries that generate foreign exchange. A competitive exchange rate, combined with stable policy, efficient logistics and lower operating costs, would help protect the country’s recovery, the association said.
The intervention comes after the rupee hit a cycle-high Rs. 346.50 selling rate at state banks earlier this week, prompting government calls for fuel-import cuts to ease dollar pressure.
