Trade deficit up 10.4pc

Pakistan’s goods trade deficit rose by 10.4 per cent in August 2026 from the same month a year ago, as imports increased at more than double the rate of exports, official data showed.

ISLAMABAD: Pakistan’s goods trade deficit rose by 10.4 per cent in August 2026 from the same month a year ago, as imports increased at more than double the rate of exports, official data showed.

According to the Pakistan Bureau of Statistics (PBS), exports climbed 3.8 per cent year-on-year (YoY) to $2.51 billion in August, but were down 15.1 per cent from July 2026. Imports, however, surged 7.4 per cent from a year earlier to $5.68 billion, but were 17.7 per cent lower than the $6.9 billion recorded in the previous month. This increased the monthly trade gap in August 2026 to $3.17 billion from $2.87 billion a year earlier and $3.95 billion in July 2026.

In the first two months of FY27 (July and August), the trade deficit increased 18.1 per cent to $7.12 billion from $6.025 billion last year. During this period, exports increased 7.04 per cent to $5.46 billion and imports increased by 13 per cent to $12.575 billion from the same period of last year.

It is noted that in the last fiscal year, 2025-26, the overall trade deficit grew 21.57 per cent to $39.47 billion, as exports fell 5.97 per cent to $30.13 billion while imports jumped 7.9 per cent to $69.6 billion.

The PBS also reported the services trade performance for July 2026. Local companies imported more services than they exported. However, the trade deficit in services declined by 24.85 per cent, reaching $228.6 million in July compared to $304.2 million in July 2025.

In June 2026, exports were recorded at $943 million, imports at $1.026 billion, and the deficit at $83.56 million. Overall, services exports declined by 1.7 per cent and imports increased by 12.6 per cent compared to the previous month.

Notably, the trade deficit in services declined by 33.38 per cent, reaching $1.89 billion in full FY26 compared to $2.84 billion in FY25. In FY26, the economy imported services from foreign companies worth $11.93 billion and exported services abroad for $10.04 billion. Whereas, in FY25, the country’s services exports were recorded at $8.45 billion, and imports stood at $11.3 billion, representing an increase of 18.8 per cent in services exports and a 5.67 per cent increase in imports.