Pakistan Trade Deficit
Pakistan's trade deficit widens to $31.96 billion
Islamabad: Pakistan's trade deficit has widened 82 percent year-on-year to $31.96 billion, media reports said on Thursday.
The movement was largely driven by more than a double increase in imports compared to exports, showed data released by the Pakistan Bureau of Statistics on Wednesday.
An upward trend in the trade deficit was witnessed for the eighth consecutive month owing to an unprecedented increase in imports while exports stagnated at around $2.5bn to $2.8bn a month, mostly of semi-finished products and raw material, reports The Dawn.
Official data showed that the merchandise trade deficit grew 22 percent year-on-year to $3.09bn in February. The highest-ever increase in imports also helped the Federal Board of Revenue collect maximum revenue at the import stage, including sales tax, withholding tax and customs duty.
However, the government’s battle against the bloated trade deficit is reversing and may cause pressure on the external side because of record imports, reports The Dawn.
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