ISLAMABAD: The country’s trade deficit has shot up by 28 percent in the first two months (July-August) of the ongoing fiscal year 2014-15 due to the massive increase in imports and continuous decline in exports.
The country’s trade imbalance has recorded at $4.243 billion during July-August period of the financial year 2014-15 as against $3.308 billion of the corresponding period of the previous year showing a decline of 28.26 percent, according to the data released by Pakistan Bureau of Statistics (PBS). The trade deficit has widened because imports have outpaced the exports during the first two months of the current fiscal year.
According to the PBS, exports went down by 5.84 percent in first couple of months, as country has exported goods worth of $1.91 billion in July-August 2014-15 as against $1.98 billion of the same period of previous year. Meanwhile, the imports have shown growth of 9.44 percent, as country imported goods worth of $4.718 billion in July-August 2014-15 as against $3.572 billion. Therefore, the country’s trade imbalance has recorded at $4.243 billion during July-August period of the financial year 2014-15 as against $3.308 billion of the corresponding period of the previous year.
However, the industrialists believed that exports are continuously declining from last few months mainly due to worse power shortage that cripple the production of the industries. Even, the rupee depreciation against the US dollar did not pull the declining exports in the previous month of August. The rupee has lost it value by 4-5 level during August due to the political uncertainty emerged after the sit-ins of Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) and Pakistan Awami Tehreek (PAT) in Federal capital. Normally, exports enhance due to the rupee depreciation.
Meanwhile, the Pakistan Bureau of Statistics suggested that exports went down by 3.63 percent in August 2014 as against exports of the same month of the previous year. Exports have recorded at $1.91 billion in August 2014 compared to $1.98 billion of August 2013. However, the imports have recorded massive increase of 32.08 percent, as it registered at $4.718 billion in August 2014 against $3.572 billion of August 2013.
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