Petroleum import bill falls to $1.2bn in Dec

January 19, 2026 (MLN): The import bill of the petroleum group decreased to $1.18 billion in December 2025, marking a decrease of 6% YoY compared to the import bill of $1.25 bn recorded in December 2024, data released by the State Bank of Pakistan (SBP) showed.

Conversely, the imports of petroleum products went up by 17.4% MoM compared to the bill of $1.01 bn in November 2026.

Likewise on a monthly basis, imports have increased by 21.65% MoM compared to the imports worth $4.72 bn recorded in November 2025.

Cumulatively in 6MFY26, total imports marked a rise of 12.27% YoY to $31.33 bn compared to imports of $27.9 bn in 6MFY25.

The share of petroleum products in the total import bill stood at 20.62% in December 2025.

In 6MFY26, the import bill of petroleum products went  down by 2.64% YoY to $7.09 bn against $7.28 bn recorded in the same period last year.

Cumulatively in 6MFY26, imports under the transport group surged by 109.2% YoY to $1.71bn compared to $816.53m recorded in 6MFY25.

On a monthly basis, the transport import bill clocked in at $293.35m in December 2025, marking a sharp increase of 25.1% MoM compared to $234.44m in November.

The rise was primarily driven by higher imports of road motor vehicles, which stood at $267.46m in December, up 19.1% MoM, while cumulatively rising to $1.58bn in 6MFY26 against $766.01m last year.

Going forward, imports of agricultural and other chemicals increased by 7.69% YoY during 6MFY26 to $5.02bn, compared to $4.66bn in the same period last year.

On a monthly basis, the group’s imports stood at $865.73m in December, up 12.8% MoM.

The increase was largely attributed to higher imports of plastic materials and medicinal products, which rose to $245.51m and $94.29m, respectively, during the month.

The country’s food imports recorded a rise of 19.9% YoY during 6MFY26, clocking in at $4.11bn compared to $3.43bn in 6MFY25.

On a monthly basis, food group imports increased by 11.0% MoM to $803.90m in December.

Under the group, the import of palm oil rose by 19.6% YoY cumulatively to $1.85bn, while pulses imports declined by 15.9% YoY to $369.52m in 6MFY26, and fell marginally by 1.4% MoM to $69.97m in December.

Meanwhile, machinery imports increased by 15.4% YoY during 6MFY26 to $4.63bn, compared to $4.02bn in the corresponding period last year. On a monthly basis, machinery imports stood at $814.68m in December, up 33.3% MoM.

Under the machinery group, imports of electrical machinery and apparatus amounted to $158.99m, though down 3.9% MoM, while remaining broadly stable on a cumulative basis at $1.31bn during 6MFY26.

The metal group’s import bill rose by 16.8% YoY to $2.85bn in 6MFY26 compared to $2.44bn in the same period last year.

On a monthly basis, metal imports jumped by 24.5% MoM to $511.20m in December, driven mainly by a sharp increase in iron and steel imports, which stood at $245.19m during the month, up 32.8% MoM.

Under the textile group, the country incurred an import expenditure of $2.59bn during 6MFY26, remaining largely flat compared to $2.59bn recorded in 6MFY25.

On a monthly basis, textile imports increased by 15.6% MoM to $460.15m in December, while showing a decline of 14.9% YoY compared to the same month last year.

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