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ISLAMABAD: Pakistan’s textile sector has recorded a significant decline in exports, falling by 22.6% in March 2023 compared to the same month the previous year, according to data released by the Pakistan Bureau of Statistics (PBS).
The exports were valued at $1.26 billion in March 2023, down from $1.63 billion in March 2022. The PBS data also showed that the country’s textile exports in the first nine months of the fiscal year 2022-23 decreased by 12.4% to $12.48 billion, declining from $14.24 billion in the same period last year.
This decrease in textile exports is concerning for Pakistan’s economy, which is already grappling with low foreign exchange reserves. The Forex reserves held by the State Bank of Pakistan (SBP) are currently at $4.04 billion, which is barely enough to cover a month’s worth of essential imports.
However, on a month-on-month basis, textile exports registered an increase of 6.6% in March 2023, as compared to $1.18 billion recorded in February.
Pakistan’s overall exports during July-March (2022-23) were recorded at $21.046 billion against the exports of $23.350 billion in July-March of 2021-22, showing a decline of nearly 10%, according to the trade data released by PBS earlier this month.
The decline in exports is a cause for concern for Pakistan’s economy as well as business and traders community, which is heavily reliant on exports to earn foreign exchange.