ISLAMABAD: Chairman of the Economic Policy and Business Development (EPBD) Gohar Ejaz has voiced deep concern over Pakistan’s widening trade deficit, warning that the growing imbalance poses a serious threat to the country’s external account stability.
He said the trade deficit surged by 33.8 percent year-on-year in the first quarter of fiscal year 2026, reaching USD 9.43 billion, as exports fell 3.9 percent to USD 7.6 billion while imports jumped 13.9 percent to USD 17.03 billion.
Ejaz said the decline in exports was mainly driven by a 27 percent fall in the food group, while imports in transport and textile groups skyrocketed by 142 percent and 44 percent, respectively.
“This widening trade gap underscores deep structural flaws in our economy,” he remarked, adding that Pakistan’s export base remains narrow, low-value, and undiversified, while imports are largely consumption-driven and inelastic.
He stressed that export-led growth anchored in competitiveness, productivity, innovation, and market diversification is the only sustainable solution to the persistent external imbalances.
“Without making our exports competitive and expanding our product and market base, Pakistan will continue to face recurring balance-of-payments crises and fall back into boom-and-bust cycles,” Ejaz warned.
He urged urgent policy measures to enhance industrial productivity, encourage innovation, and support export diversification, emphasizing that only a competitive export sector can secure long-term economic stability for the country.
Copyright Business Recorder, 2025
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