March 12, 2019 (MLN): The country’s trade deficit during the first eight months of FY19 decreased by 11.03 percent to USD 21.523 Billion compared to USD 24.191 Billion from last year.
According to figures released by the Pakistan Bureau of Statistics, the total exports during the period were USD 15.113 Billion, an increase of just 1.85 percent compared to USD 14.838 Billion during the corresponding period from last year.
Total Imports during the period under review decreased by 6.13 percent, falling to USD 36.636 Billion compared to USD 39.029 Billion.
On a monthly basis, total exports fell by 7.54 percent to USD 1.889 Billion in February 2019 compared USD 2.043 Billion in January 2019. Exports were stagnant when compared to February 2018, showing a slight decrease of 0.37 percent or USD 7 Million.
Imports also witnessed a decline of 7.19 percent in February 2019, with the country’s imports at USD 4.180 Billion compared to USD 4.504 Billion from January 2019. However, when compared to the corresponding period from last year, total imports declined by a bigger margin of 12.26 percent.
Balance of trade in February was USD -2.291 Billion, an improvement of 6.91 percent compared to the previous month’s figure of USD -2.461 Billion. On a yearly basis, the balance of trade numbers have improved by 20.12 percent when compared to February 2018 figure of USD -2.868 Billion.
