KARACHI (News Desk) – In a major economic turnaround, Pakistan recorded a current account surplus of $2.1 billion in the fiscal year 2024–25 — its first annual surplus in 14 years.
This marks a sharp reversal from the $2.07 billion deficit posted in FY24, according to data released by the State Bank of Pakistan (SBP) on Friday.
In a post on X (formerly Twitter), the SBP confirmed, "Current account balance recorded a surplus of $2.1 billion during FY25 compared to a deficit of $2.1 billion during FY24."
The upward trend was also reflected in the June 2025 monthly data, where the current account showed a surplus of $328 million, a strong improvement from the $84 million deficit in May 2025 and $500 million deficit in June last year.
Economic experts attribute the surplus to a 27 percent surge in remittances, a 16 percent drop in the services deficit, and a slight improvement in foreign direct investment and exports.
Textile exports rose by 7.4 per cent year-on-year to $17.89 billion, while remittances hit a record $38.3 billion, largely due to increased manpower exports, incentives for formal remittance channels, and a reduced gap between official and unofficial exchange rates.
Foreign direct investment also edged up by 5 percent to $2.5 billion during the fiscal year.
Also read: Current Account records over 1.8bn dollars surplus in 11 months of FY25
Information Technology exports showed steady growth as well, reaching $3.8 billion in FY25 — an 18 per cent rise from $3.2 billion in the previous year. For June alone, IT exports totaled $338 million, up 14 per cent year-on-year and 3 per cent from May, exceeding the 12-month average.
Experts suggest that structural reforms, better exchange rate management, and policy incentives helped steer the economy back on track. They caution, however, that the improvement may be temporary, forecasting a mild current account deficit of $0.5 to $1.5 billion in FY26 — equivalent to 0.1–0.3 per cent of GDP — if import pressures and global uncertainties rise.
Nonetheless, the surplus has been hailed as a positive signal for the economy, potentially improving investor confidence and easing pressure on the Pakistani rupee. .