Pakistan's services exports decline for third consecutive month

The trade deficit in Pakistan's services sector widens as exports have experienced a third continuous monthly decline on an annual basis, data released by the Pakistan Bureau of Statistics (PBS) shows.

Services sector exports dropped by 7.25% to $677.9 million in January 2024, compared to $739.09 million in January 2023. 

However, there is a silver lining as exports of goods witnessed an uptick in December and January following a prolonged decline in the current fiscal year. 

During the first seven months of fiscal year 2024 (July to January), services exports reached $4.044 billion, marking a slight decrease compared to $4.055 billion during the same period last year.

Despite the decline in dollar terms, there has been a notable improvement of 24.23% in rupee terms, with services exports reaching Rs 1.27 trillion.

On the other hand, services imports surged by 53% to $99.5 million in January, up from $64.99 million in the same month last year. 

Total services imports reached $1.016 billion during the first seven months of the fiscal year, compared to $4.079 billion during the same period last year.

The widening trade deficit in services is a cause for concern, expanding by 641.56% to $1.072 billion between July and January, compared to $231.9 million during the same period last year.