Pakistan trade deficit reduced by 12.3pc, consumers hit by food exports surge
Business
Overall exports in 2023-24 jump 10.54pc, imports down 0.84pc
ISLAMABAD (Web Desk) – A sizeable jump in exports and minor decrease in imports meant that Pakistan saw trade deficit shrinking by 12.3 per cent in 2023-24, latest data released by the Pakistan Bureau of Statistics (PBS) shows.
These figures mean that the trade deficit was recorded at $24.09bn against $27.47bn in 2022-23, after the country’s exports increased by 10.54pc to $30.64bn and imports reduced by 0.84pc to $54.73bn.
Meanwhile, Pakistan exported goods worth $2.529bn in June 2024, translating into an increase of 7.3pc when compared to $2.356bn in the same period last year, marking the tenth consecutive monthly rise in exports.
However, Pakistan’s imports for the month under consideration reached $4.92bn with a jump of 17.43pc, totalling, which means there was trade deficit of $2.39bn in June after shooting up by 15.39pc.
When compared to the previous month of May, exports in June were down by 10.9pc, and imports remained the same.
DOMESTIC CONSUMERS AT THE RECEIVING END
Government may boost about the increase in exports, but the people won’t be much delighted by this development given the fact that raw food exports jumped by 37pc in 2023-24, meaning a reduced supply fuelled food inflation in Pakistan at the low-income groups are worst hit by the prevailing cost of living crisis.
Read more: We export food items when people are being crushed by food inflation at home
According to the Trade Development Authority of Pakistan (TDAP), the food exports totalled at $8bn in 2023-24 against 5.8bn recorded last fiscal year, which shows that the fact that the textile sector – the country’s traditional export source – failed to perform thanks of the alarming rise in cost of doing business and its failure to invest in value addition.
Hence, it is not a surprise that the average price of basmati rice has skyrocketed to Rs400 per kg from Rs150 during the past two years,
Read more: Pakistan food inflation is going up, so are the food exports
But it is not just rice, meat exports increased 17.66pc to $ 507 million, thus propelling the meat prices in a country where the per capita protein consumption is already very low.
