PAKISTAN TRADE DEFICIT: SURGE IN APRIL
The trade dynamics in Pakistan for April revealed a significant surge in the trade deficit, reaching $2.374 billion, marking a notable increase of 2.81 times Year-on-Year (YoY) compared to April 2023. This substantial rise from the $846 million deficit recorded last year was reported by the Pakistan Bureau of Statistics (PBS). On a monthly basis, the trade deficit widened by 3.16% Month-on-Month (MoM), compared to March 2024’s deficit of $2.3 billion.
Despite the monthly increase, there is a positive trend seen in the cumulative figures for the first ten months of Fiscal Year 2023-24 (10MFY24), with a notable reduction of 17.09% YoY in the negative trade balance. The deficit stood at $19.51 billion compared to $23.54 billion in 10MFY23.
Analyzing the specifics of exports, April witnessed a decline of 8.67% MoM to $2.35 billion, down from $2.57 billion in March 2024. However, exports showed a YoY increase of 10.02% compared to April 2023’s $2.14 billion.
Conversely, the country’s expenditure on imports during April saw a 3.08% MoM reduction, totaling $4.72 billion compared to $4.87 billion in the previous month. Yet, imports surged by 58.43% YoY, reaching $2.98 billion compared to April 2023.
Cumulatively, in the first ten months of FY24, exports amounted to $25.28 billion, while imports stood at $44.79 billion, marking a YoY increase of 9.10% in exports and a 4.09% YoY decrease in imports. This contributes to a reduced trade deficit over the fiscal year, showcasing a positive trend in the trade balance.
