Pakistan slashes trade deficit by 43pc in FY23 amid import curbs

By Staff Reporter

ISLAMABAD: Pakistan’s trade deficit shrank by 43 percent to $27.55 billion in the fiscal year 2023, data from the Pakistan Bureau of Statistics (PBS) showed on Monday, as the government curbed imports to cope with low foreign exchange reserves.

Exports fell 12.7 percent to $27.7 billion, while imports dropped 31 percent to $55.3 billion in FY23 (July-June), the PBS said.

In June, exports declined 18.7 percent year-on-year to $2.37 billion and imports plunged 46.8 percent to $4.18 billion, narrowing the monthly trade gap by 63.3 percent to $1.8 billion.

Exports rose 7.6 percent month-on-month in June, while imports fell 3.4 percent, the data showed.
Exports have been falling for nine consecutive months due to economic challenges such as high inflation, currency devaluation, political instability, import restrictions and rising energy and financing costs.

Pakistan has faced a chronic trade deficit since 2003, mainly due to its heavy reliance on energy imports. China is its largest trading partner, followed by the United States, with which it has a trade surplus.