KARACHI: The country’s current account posted a $47 million deficit in March 2021 compared to $50 million surplus in March 2020, the State Bank of Pakistan (SBP) reported on Friday night.

The current account deficit in March 2021 is also higher than what it was in February 2021 when deficit was of $31 million. Overall, the external account continues to perform well with around one billion dollar surplus in first nine months of this fiscal year. According to SBP, on a cumulative basis, the current account remains in surplus of $959 million in July-March FY21 as against a deficit of $4.1 billion in the corresponding period of last fiscal year (FY20).

Analysts say the current account is primarily helped by a continuous strong growth in home remittances sent by overseas Pakistanis. The country is receiving over two billion dollar of remittances every month since June 2020.

In addition, some growth in exports has also contributed to the surplus current account during this fiscal year. Pakistan’s exports in March 2021 reached a decade-high of $2.3 billion.

It may be mentioned here that the SBP has already estimated that the current account deficit is likely to remain below 1 percent of GDP end of this fiscal year supported by continued strong prospects for remittances and pickup in exports, especially textile sector.

Copyright Business Recorder, 2021