KARACHI: The country’s trade deficit shrank by 35.51 per cent to $22.9 billion during the first nine months of the current fiscal year FY23 as compared to $35.509bn in the corresponding period of last year.
Data compiled by Pakistan Bureau of Statistics (PBS) reveals that the exports during July-March (FY23) were recorded at $21.046bn against the exports of $23.35bn in July-March of 2021-22, showing a decline of 9.87pc.
The imports plummeted by 25.34pc during the period under review by going down from $58.85bn last year to $43.94bn during the current year. On a year-on-year basis, the exports witnessed a decline of 14.76pc and were recorded at $2.367bn in March 2023 against the exports of $2.77bn in March 2022.
The imports also decreased to $3.82bn in March 2023 from $6.40bn in March 2022, showing a negative growth of 40.25pc. The trade deficit narrowed by 59.75pc on a YoY basis to $1.46bn in March 2023 from $3.63bn in March 2022.
On a month-on-month basis, the exports during March 2023 jumped by 8.03pc when compared to the exports of $2.19bn in February 2022. The imports into the country decreased by 5.11pc in March 2023 when compared to the imports of $4.03bn in February 2022.
The PBS data further shows that the trade deficit contracted by 20.73pc on a month-on-month basis and stood at $1.46bn in March 2023 as compared to $1.84bn in February 2022.
