Sri Lanka’s mature apparel sector would survive GSP + withdrawal, a top industrialist said.

"There is a lot of hype about losing GSP +. If factories close, it is not because Sri Lanka lost trading concessions to Europe, but because cowboy investors who were looking to make short term gains would no longer be interested in staying around," Joint Managing Director Dial Textile Lanka Neil Umagiliya said in an interview with The Island Financial Review.

He said investments were made in Sri Lanka’s apparel industry at a time when there were no trade concessions, with Sri Lanka’s cheap labour being the main attraction.

"We can survive without GSP +, which was a bonus after the 2004 tsunami to help our economy recover. The key is to create niche markets at the higher end. We also have to treat our workers well," he said.