File photo. Rizwan Tabassum—AFP
Exports from Pakistan have seen a year-on-year increase of 35.77 percent in the first four months of the ongoing fiscal year compared to the preceding year, in rupee terms, according to provisional data released by the Pakistan Bureau of Statistics (PBS).
The information released by the PBS says exports from July to October 2022 had been recorded at Rs. 2.13 trillion against Rs. 1.57 trillion in July-October 2021. In dollar terms, it said the exports had increased by 1.09 percent, from $9,460 million last year to $9,563 million this year.
Comparing the year-on-year change, the PBS said total exports in October 2022 had been recorded at Rs. 525,831 million compared to Rs. 423,063 million in October 2021, an increase of 24.29 percent. However, a decline was recorded in dollar terms, with exports last October recorded at $2,464 million compared to $2,384 million last month.
On a month-on-month basis, exports declined by 6.72 percent, going from Rs. 563,714 million in September 2022 to Rs. 525,831 million in October.
According to the PBS, October’s exports were primarily linked to the textile sector, with knitwear fetching Rs. 86,400 million; readymade garments Rs. 60,778 million; bed-wear Rs. 47,895 million; cotton cloth Rs. 37,407 million; non-Basmati rice Rs. 20,344 million; towels Rs. 17,553 million; made-up articles, excluding towels and bed-wear Rs. 12,758 million; fish and fish preparations Rs. 12,057 million; Basmati rice Rs. 11,375 million; and cotton yarn Rs. 10,819 million.
Imports and trade deficit
Overall imports, meanwhile, showed a year-on-year increase of 12.87 percent when comparing July-October 2021 and July-October 2022. The PBS reported imports of Rs. 4.7 trillion this year, compared to Rs. 4.16 trillion last year. In October 2022 alone, imports equaled Rs. 1,039,036 million, compared to Rs. 1,093,545 million the previous October, a decline of 4.98 percent. Similarly, imports declined by 15.68 percent from September to October.
The main import commodities in October 2022 were petroleum products of Rs. 100,436 million; petroleum crude Rs. 82,124 million; liquefied natural gas Rs. 65,485 million; palm oil Rs. 59,739 million; plastic materials Rs. 47,301 million; iron and steel Rs. 38,517 million; raw cotton Rs. 29,943 million; iron and steel scrap Rs. 26,037 million; electrical machinery and apparatus Rs. 24,058 million; and medicinal products Rs. 23,234 million.
According to the PBS, the trade deficit in October 2022 was recorded at Rs. 513,205 million, a decrease of 23.24 percent compared to September, when it hit Rs. 668,585 million. Cumulatively, from July-October 2022, the trade deficit hit Rs. 2.57 trillion, a 0.99 percent decline from the corresponding period of last year, when it was recorded at Rs. 2.595 trillion.