ISLAMABAD - Pakistan’s exports have recorded a handsome growth of over 10 percent during July 2017 over a year ago after registering a continuous decline for the last couple of years.
Pakistan exported goods worth of $1.63 billion during July 2017 as compared to $1.48 billion of the same period of last year showing an increase of 10.58 percent, according to the Pakistan Bureau of Statistics (PBS). “This is a positive sign that exports have recorded growth, which will likely to continue in months to come,” said an official of the Ministry of Commerce. He further said that exports improved due to the former prime minister’s incentive package of worth Rs180 billion.
Meanwhile, the country’s imports have recorded an increase of 36.74 percent and reached to $4.83 billion during July 2017 as compared to $3.54 billion of the same month of last year. Therefore, the country’s trade deficit has registered at $3.2 billion during the previous month as against $2.06 billion of the preceding month showing a growth of 55.46 percent.
Pakistan’s trade deficit had recorded a historic high level of $32.58 billion during last fiscal year because of the record increase in imports and continues decline in exports. The government has now decided to revise its trade policies to enhance exports. The government has set an annual export target of $35 billion for the year 2018 under a three-year strategic trade policy unveiled last year.
The Ministry of Commerce had admitted that the government could not achieve the export target of $35 billion by June 2018. The ministry had decided to make changes in the trade policy framework. The ministry in consultation with new Commerce Minister Pervaiz Malik would present the mid-term review of the Strategic Trade Policy Framework (STPF) 2015-18 to the newly elected Prime Minister Shahid Khaqan Abbasi.
Sources said that the ministry would propose measures to control the trade deficit of the country, which had recorded at the historic level of $32.58 percent during last fiscal year. The PBS data showed that Pakistan’s exports have declined by 14.7 percent to $1.63 billion in July 2017 from $1.91 billion of July 2016. However, the imports recorded a growth of 6.64 percent and reached $4.84 billion in July 2017 from $4.53 billion in the same period of the last year. Therefore, the trade deficit was recorded at $3.2 billion in July 2017 as against $2.62 billion of July 2016, showing an increase of 55.46 percent.
IMRAN ALI KUNDI