ISLAMABAD: Pakistan’s trade deficit during the first seven months (July-January) of the current fiscal year (2020-21) increased 8.25pc to $14.96 billion, compared to $13.82 billion in the corresponding period of the last financial year.
According to data released by the Pakistan Bureau of Statistics (PBS), the trade deficit for the month of January 2021 was recorded at $2.601 billion compared to a deficit of $2.639 billion in December 2020, showing an improvement of 1.44pc. Compared to January 2020 deficit of $2.149 billion, the trade numbers deteriorated 21.03pc.
Exports decreased 9.89pc to $2.132 billion compared to $2.366 billion in December 2020. However, compared to January 2020, exports increased by 8.11pc.
On the other hand, imports in January 2021 decreased by 5.43pc, clocking in at $4.733 billion compared to $5.005 billion in December 2020, while they increased 14.85pc when compared to January 2020.
Overall, the 7-month exports stood at $14.242 billion compared to $13.496 from the corresponding period of the last year, showing an increase of 5.53pc. Similarly, imports during the period increased 6.92pc to $29.205 billion compared to $27.316 during the same period of FY20.
