Pakistan’s trade gap jumps 46% to $3.34bn in September

Pakistan’s goods trade deficit widened sharply to $3.34 billion in September 2025, up nearly 46% from $2.29 billion a year earlier, as imports surged and exports declined, official data show. Imports climbed 14% to $5.85 billion while exports fell 11.7% to $2.5 billion. Compared with August, the gap expanded 16.3%.

For the July–September quarter of FY26, the trade deficit reached $9.37 billion, a 32.9% year-on-year increase. Imports during the quarter rose 13.5% to $16.97 billion, whereas exports slipped 3.8% to $7.6 billion. Separately, the services trade deficit in August widened 21.9% to $437 million; however, for FY25 the services gap narrowed 15.8% to $2.62 billion as exports of services improved.

Economists warn that the widening merchandise gap could weigh on foreign exchange reserves, pressure the rupee and complicate external repayments. They argue that Pakistan’s export base remains too concentrated in low-complexity sectors. Policy recommendations include improving energy reliability, logistics and market access, expanding access to finance, and supporting a pivot into higher-value industries such as technical textiles, processed foods, light engineering and IT-enabled services.

Analysts added that without decisive steps to diversify and upgrade industry, recent stabilisation gains under the IMF programme risk being eroded by renewed import demand and weak export momentum.