Booming Exports Lift Economy

Pakistan’s trade figures received unprecedented support through promising export revenue, hinting at revival of economy

In a positive development for the country, Pakistan’s trade figures have received a huge boost as export volumes of over $30 billion has been recorded for the first time in its history in a single financial year.

Trade and economic experts are pointing to the prudent policies and multiple incentives given by the government to support export-oriented industries as the reason for the increase in exports.

According to the latest data shared by the Pakistan Bureau Statistics (PBS), the country has recorded export of commodities worth $31.76 billion or around Rs 5.66 trillion in the financial year ending June 30. Breaking these numbers down further, this means that that exports have risen from $25.3 billion or Rs8.98 trillion up by 25.51 per cent in the fiscal year 2020-21. Whereas, the imports of $80 billion or around Rs 14.25 trillion was recorded in the same period of time. Exports increased by 41.93 per cent worth $25.3 billion or Rs8.98 trillion in the fiscal year 2020-21. The overall deficit for the country closed down to $48.26 billion or Rs8.6 trillion.

There was an increase of 17.3 per cent in the export figures for the month of March as exports increased from $2.3 billion to $2.7 during the period. These details were shared by the Ministry of Commerce, Pakistan’s exports for in March 2021 and the current year. Ac¬cording to the data, Pakistan’s export in the first nine months of the current fiscal year grew by 25 per cent to $23.3 billion as compared to the corresponding period of the previous fiscal year. In the nine months of the current fiscal year, Pakistan recorded an increase of $4.6 billion in the value of exports as compared to the previous fiscal year.

There is growing optimism within government circles that this momentum will carry further. According to government estimates, Pakistan’s goods exports by the end of the current fiscal year would stand at around $ 31.2 billion, while the value of exports of services would stand around $7.5 billion. Projecting this trajectory and extrapolating it into the future, the government has projected that the accumulated value of exports of goods and services would approximate around $38.7 billion.

According to the data released by the Ministry, the average monthly exports of Pakistan hovered around $2.5 to $2.8 billion. This point was raised by Abdul Razak Dawood, the Advisor to the Prime Minister on Commerce and Investment. Commenting on the recent development regarding exports of goods and services, he said: “Our exports are in line with our targets and we expect to achieve our yearly target.” He also congratulated the exporters for “maintaining the momentum of exports under these testing times in the global market.”

With regards to the release of the import data, which has not been released, the advisor said that “import figures would be shared when finalised by the PBS.”

According to data released by PBS, Pakistan’s trade deficit in the current fiscal year widened by 82 percent and reached $31.9 billion. Most analysts are unanimous in their appraisal that the current upward trend in trade deficit, besides being a reflection of the current global situation, is also a direct result of an increase in imports in the country. However, the incumbent government has taken initiatives, through its engagements with several regional countries, and signed trade agreements to bring down the trade deficit.

In continuation of these efforts, there have been meetings with other governments. The advisor for commerce and investment, on March 11, met Yerzhan Kistafinin, the Kazakh Ambassador, to discuss customs cooperation, transit trade, and preferential trade agreements. After meeting with the Kazakh Ambassador, the adviser notified that the Kazakh Ambassador was fully committed to support the “Silk Route Reconnect” initiative and said that the Ambassador gave him his “full support.”

There have been similar other meetings with several other Central Asian Republics who have also engaged with the country to bolster economic cooperation. As a result of such diplomatic engagements, the Pakistan textile industry’s export have received massive support and their current value stands at around $1.69 billion, which is a huge improvement from last year. In February 2021, the textile exports were $1.23 billion.

The trade policy of Pakistan is centered around promoting and projecting the local domestic products. In this effort, Pakistan has also launched a Make In Pakistan Policy, as a result, major telecom companies have entered the local market as manufacturers. It is predicted that policies such as these would bump up Pakistan’s mobile exports and also increase job opportunities in the country.

— ali@khaleejtimes.com