Pakistan’s petroleum imports surged by 15.74% in the first quarter of the fiscal year 2024-25, reaching $4.05 billion compared to $3.5 billion in the same period last year, according to data from the Pakistan Bureau of Statistics (PBS).
Despite an overall increase, petroleum products saw a 10.6% decline in imports, while crude oil and liquefied natural gas (LNG) imports rose significantly.
Crude oil imports climbed by 51.02%, from $947 million to $1.43 billion, reflecting higher demand. LNG imports grew by 14.3%, reaching $1.03 billion, and liquefied petroleum gas (LPG) imports soared by 71.19%, hitting $240.5 million compared to last year.
Other petroleum product imports also saw a dramatic 270.59% rise to $0.126 million from $0.034 million.
In September alone, petroleum group imports increased by 4.33% year-on-year, amounting to $1.39 billion.
However, on a month-on-month basis, there was a slight decrease of 0.71%, with imports valued at $1.39 billion, down from $1.4 billion in August.
Meanwhile, Pakistan’s overall exports rose by 14.11% to $7.87 billion in the first quarter, while imports climbed by 9.86% to $13.31 billion, widening the trade deficit by 4.24% to $5.44 billion.
