Pakistan’s IT exports hit $435mn in September, 'second-highest ever'

Pakistan’s IT and tech exports rose to $435 million in September 2026, the second-highest monthly figure on record, Adviser to the Finance Minister Khurram Schehzad said on Friday.

In a post on X, Schehzad said the September total was $2 million below the all-time high of $437 million set in December 2025. Exports grew 18% year-on-year and 10% month-on-month.

IT exports for the first quarter of FY27 (July–September) stood at $1.25 billion, he said.

Schehzad credited the growth to targeted incentives in the FY27 budget for exporters, and for the IT sector in particular, as well as to a strengthening digital economy. He said these were supporting exports, non-debt foreign exchange earnings, high-value jobs and Pakistan’s integration with global markets.

Freelancers’ export earnings

In a separate post on X, Schehzad said Pakistan’s freelancers’ export earnings reached a record $197 million in September 2026 - the “highest monthly level ever recorded”. The earnings rose 49% year-on-year and 11% month-on-month.

“Pakistan’s growing freelance economy is increasingly translating its young digital talent into exports, non-debt foreign exchange earnings, high-value opportunities and greater integration with global markets,” he said.

According to Schehzad, freelancers’ exports totalled around $550 million in the first quarter of fiscal year 2026-27 (1QFY27), up 46% from the same period a year earlier.

‘Goods exports hit 20-month high’

In another post, the advisor said Pakistan’s goods exports crossed $3 billion in September 2026, reaching their “highest monthly level in 20 months”.