ISLAMABAD: Pakistan’s textile exports have shown a 15 per cent year-on-year decline in August FY21, as compared to same month of the previous fiscal.
According to data released by Pakistan Bureau of Statistics (PBS) on Monday, Pakistan’s textile and clothing exports declined by over 15 per cent year-on-year in August 2020, from $1.19 billion in Aug last year to $1.007 billion.
The textile industry boasts a significant presence in Pakistan, being the largest manufacturing industry and the largest export earning sector. It contributes 8.5 per cent to the gross domestic product (GDP) of the economy and employs 45 per cent of the labour force in the country.
Exports in the textile sector have dipped in the second month of the current fiscal year after posting a growth in the first month. The Covid-19 has severely hampered the demand for the country’s textile exports during the last five months.
Earlier, it was only in February when the textile and clothing exports jumped nearly 17 per cent YoY. This growth was reported after a long time as the past few years had been marred by single-digit increases.
Details showed readymade garments exports declined by 13.74pc in value and drifted much lower by 51.83pc in quantity during August, while those of knitwear dropped 10.65pc in value and 27.2pc in quantity, and bed wear posted negative growth of 12.29pc in value and 25.52pc in quantity.
Towel exports fell by 10.12pc in value and 15.85pc in quantity, whereas those of cotton cloth dipped 17.91pc in value and dipped by 33.42pc in quantity.
The government lifted the ban on exports of seven products classified as personal protective equipment (PPE) in a bid to allow manufacturers to honour international orders.
Among primary commodities, cotton yarn exports dipped by 51.36pc, while yarn other than cotton by 100pc. Export of made-up articles — excluding towels — declined by 5.82pc, and tents, canvas and tarpaulin increased by a massive 34.07pc during the month under review. The export of raw cotton declined by 94.4pc during the month under review.
The import of textile machinery dropped by 30.27pc during the second month of the current fiscal year — a sign that no expansion or modernisation projects were taken up by the textile industry during the month.
The country’s textile and clothing exports posted a negative growth of over 6pc year-on-year to $12.526bn in the fiscal year 2019-20 compared to $13.327bn in the corresponding period last year.
