By Staff Reporter
ISLAMABAD: Pakistan’s trade deficit surged 55.2% month-on-month to $3.39 billion in April 2025, driven by a sharp contraction in exports and a double-digit rise in imports, official data showed on Friday.
Analysts said its the highest monthly trade deficit in three years.
Exports plummeted 19.05% to $2.14 billion in April from $2.64 billion in March, marking the steepest monthly decline in over a year, according to data released Thursday by the Pakistan Bureau of Statistics (PBS). Imports, meanwhile, climbed 14.52% to $5.53 billion during the same period, up from $4.82 billion.
On a year-on-year basis, the deficit widened 35.79% to $3.38 billion, compared with $2.49 billion in April 2024, highlighting persistent structural imbalances in the $375 billion economy.
The export slump reflects weakening global demand for textiles, which account for roughly 60% of overseas sales, amid sluggish growth in key markets. Year-on-year, exports fell 8.93% from $2.35 billion in April 2024, compounding challenges for manufacturers grappling with high energy prices and elevated financing costs.
The import rebound — up 14.09% year-on-year to $5.52 billion — signals renewed strain on the country’s foreign reserves, which stood at $10.21 billion as of April 25, barely enough to cover two months of imports.
The trend may complicates efforts by Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif’s government to curb the current-account deficit, a key metric monitored by the International Monetary Fund (IMF) under Pakistan’s $7 billion loan program.
Cumulatively, the trade deficit for the first 10 months of fiscal 2024-25 expanded 8.81% to $21.35 billion, compared with $19.62 billion a year earlier. Exports during the period rose 6.25% to $26.85 billion, while imports increased 7.37% to $48.21 billion.
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