Pakistan’s exports to Afghanistan decrease 13.59pc in 8 months

ISLAMABAD – Pakistan’s exports of goods and services to Afghanistan witnessed a decrease of 13.59 percent during the eight months of financial year (2020-21) as compared to the corresponding period of last year, State Bank of Pakistan (SBP) reported.

The overall exports to Afghanistan were recorded at $629.324 million during July-February (2020-21) against exports of $728.315 million during July-February (2019-20), showing a decline of 13.59 percent, SBP data revealed.

Meanwhile, on year-on-year basis, the exports to Afghanistan during February 2021 declined by 10 percent, from $95.194 million against the exports of $85.674 million.

On month-on-month basis, the exports to Afghanistan also dipped by 8.21 percent during February 2021 as compared to the exports of $93.341 million in January 2021, the SBP data revealed. Overall Pakistan’s exports to other countries witnessed a decline of 2.26 percent in eight months, from $16.438 billion to $16.065 billion, the SBP data revealed.

On the other hand, the imports from Afghanistan into the country during the period under review were recorded at $122.074 million against $101.115 million last year, showing growth of 20.72 percent in eight months of this year.

Meanwhile, on year-on-year basis, the imports from Afghanistan during February 2021 however increased by 5.31 percent, from $13.877 million last year to $14.614 million.

On month-on-month basis, the import from Afghanistan however decreased by 47.29 percent during February 2021 as compared to the import of $27.730 million in January 2021, the SBP data revealed. The overall imports into the country increased by 8.59 percent, from $29.604 billion to $32.149 billion, according to the data.

Plastic exports increase 7.22pc in 8 months

The exports of plastic materials from the country witnessed an increase of 7.22 percent during the eight months of financial year (2020-21) as compared to the corresponding period of last year.

Pakistan exported plastic worth $209.534 million during July-February (2020-21) compared to the exports of $195.421 million during July-February (2019-20), showing growth of 7.22 percent, according to the Pakistan Bureau of Statistics (PBS).

In terms of quantity, the exports of plastic also rose by 19.23 percent as the country exported 218,384 metric tons of plastic during the period under review compared to the exports of 183,165 metric tons during last fiscal year.

Meanwhile, on year-on-year basis, the plastic exports however decreased by 17.24 percent during the month of February 2021 as compared to the same month of last year.

The plastic exports in February 2021 were recorded at $23.616 million against the exports of $28.537 million in February 2020, the PBS data revealed. On month-on-month basis, the export of plastic however witnessed increase of 9.91 percent in February 2021 as compared to the exports of $21.486 million in January 2021.

Article source: https://nation.com.pk/27-Mar-2021/pakistan-s-exports-to-afghanistan-decrease-13-59pc-in-8-months