Minister of Economic Development and Trade Mohamed Saeed has said that imports to the Maldives increased by 19% in the first three months of the year, reflecting growing demand for goods.

Speaking at a press briefing held at the President’s Office, Minister Saeed stated that goods worth MVR 16.2 billion were imported between January and March this year, compared to MVR 13.6 billion during the same period last year.

He noted that the increase indicates rising demand, with the Government continuing efforts to ensure steady supply, including scheduled shipments of petrol and diesel over the next three months.

The minister also provided an update on container backlogs, noting that shipments stranded in Sri Lanka are being cleared and transported to the Maldives. He said the number of containers in Sri Lanka stood at 4,241 last week, but is expected to decrease to around 1,741 with the arrival of vessels scheduled for this week.

Minister Saeed said the situation is gradually returning to normal, with 1,200 containers currently on vessels at Malé port and an additional 2,500 containers expected to arrive this week. These include 500 containers on April 12, another 500 on April 13, and 1,500 containers scheduled for April 14.