Synopsis
Pakistan's trade deficit with nine neighboring countries has increased by 43.22% in the first half of the fiscal year 2024-2025, mainly due to rising imports from China, India, and Bangladesh. Exports to Afghanistan, Bangladesh, and Sri Lanka have increased, partially offsetting the decline in overall exports.Key Takeaways
- Trade deficit increased by 43.22%.
- Imports surged from China, India, and Bangladesh.
- Exports to Afghanistan, Bangladesh, and Sri Lanka rose.
- Overall exports grew by 7.85%.
- Pakistan's economy faces significant challenges.
Islamabad, Jan 19 (NationPress) The trade gap of Pakistan with its nine neighboring countries surged by 43.22% in the first half of the current fiscal year, spanning from July 2024 to June 2025, as reported by the State Bank of Pakistan (SBP).
The statistics available on the SBP website reveal that the escalating trade deficit is mainly due to heightened imports from China, India, and Bangladesh, according to Xinhua news agency.
Conversely, Pakistan's exports to Afghanistan, Bangladesh, and Sri Lanka witnessed a significant rise, which helped to somewhat mitigate the overall decline in exports.
In the July-December timeframe, the value of Pakistan's exports to nine countries—including China, Afghanistan, Bangladesh, Sri Lanka, India, Iran, Nepal, Bhutan, and the Maldives—increased by 7.85%, amounting to 2.40 billion dollars compared to 2.23 billion dollars during the same timeframe last year.
The data indicated that imports from regional countries soared by 29.97%, reaching 7.73 billion dollars in the first half of the current fiscal year, up from 5.95 billion dollars in the previous year.
Pakistan's economy is classified as a developing economy, ranking as the 24th largest based on GDP using purchasing power parity (PPP) and the 46th largest by nominal GDP. With a population of 241.5 million in 2023, it ranks 161st in per capita income (nominal GDP) and 138th by GDP (PPP) according to the International Monetary Fund (IMF).
Initially, Pakistan's economy depended heavily on private industries. However, nationalisation of substantial sectors, including financial services, manufacturing, and transportation, commenced in the early 1970s, followed by a shift towards privatisation in the 1990s.
Currently, Pakistan is undergoing economic liberalisation, which includes the privatisation of government corporations aimed at attracting foreign investment and alleviating budget deficits. Nevertheless, the country faces ongoing challenges such as rapid population growth, widespread illiteracy, political instability, antagonistic neighboring countries, and significant foreign debt.
