Maldives Ports Limited (MPL) revealed that the number of goods imported to the Maldives has decreased by 50%.
In a webinar organized by the National Federation of Maldivian Employers under the topic “Tackling new challenges in shipping and Logistics”, Chief Executive Officer of MPL Shahid Ali stated that the number of goods being imported to the Maldives show a significant decrease recently.
According to Shahid, the import and export statistics of 2019 remained successful. He said that a notable amount of goods were outgoing and incoming to the country during last year which in turn gave the impression of a 12% betterment in the import-export statistics for 2020.
He also stated that until the lockdown, the number of goods being imported showed a good raise. However, since lockdown till date, the imported goods or the cargo volume has been decreasing.
Shahid highlights that due to the decrease in imported goods and export-import procedures, the financial profit bared by the company had also decreased. In order to tackle the loss, MPL had reduced its expanses.
He states that the Company is trying to manage the costs with the limited income generated these days.
Travelling had been shut down due to the COVID-19 Pandemic and since most of the countries are exercising lockdown, the number of goods exported has been decreasing significantly. This situation calls for impacts on a country like the Maldives, which depends on Imported Goods.
