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Wednesday October 08, 2025

Textile exports fall to $2.071bln in two months of FY16/17

By Tariq Ahmed Saeedi
September 22, 2016

KARACHI: The textile exports fell 2.64 percent to $2.071 billion in the first two months of the current fiscal year of 2016/17 as the country faced a significant drop in the export revenues of raw cotton, yarn and cloth due to weak crop output and soft international prices.

Textile exports amounted to $2.127 billion in the July-August period of 20115/16, the Pakistan Bureau of Statistics (PBS) data showed on Wednesday. The data showed that cotton cloth exports dropped 4.12 percent to $352.238 million during the two months over the same period last year. Yarn exports dipped 16.64 percent to $217.296 million, while raw cotton earned the country only $10.195 million in foreign exchange in the period under review as compared $22.998 million a year earlier.

Local cotton production plunged 34.28 percent to 9.768 million bales during the last season ending in April due to the pest attacks and heavy rains, while farmers preferred to cut the acreage because of unattractive local and international prices.

In July-August, imports of raw cotton also decreased 5.55 percent to $47.685 million. Imports of synthetic fibre fell 20.93 percent to $85.819 million. Worn clothing imports, however, surged 31.15 percent to $27.871 million in the period under review. 

The PBS data showed that the exports of knitwear, which is a main value-added revenue spinner in the textile group, fell 3.18 percent to $415.161 million in July-August 2016. Towels exports decreased 17.42 percent to $114.674 million. 

Bedwear exports, however, rose 5.28 percent to $355.799 million during the two months. Readymade garments fetched $364.072 million in exports revenue, depicting 3.76 percent rise over a year ago. Likewise, exports of made-up articles increased 11.83 percent to $102.449 million in July-August 2016. 

The PBS further said food exports fell 23.15 percent to $395.188 million in the period under review with rice and fish exports too on the downward path. Fruit exports, however, swelled 56.99 percent to $61.586 million.

Total import bills, in the period under review, increased 10.32 percent to $7.888 billion.    The swelling import bill, during the July-August 2016/17 period, was mainly related to machinery group. 

The PBS said the country imported $1.876 billion worth of machinery during the two months, up a significant 62.77 percent over the same period a year ago. More than one-fourth of the total import bills in this group were due to power generation equipment. 

The investment in energy sector is ramping up owing to a major shortfall in demand and supply of electricity, which soars to 7,000 megawatts during the summer season. In July-August 2016, imports of petroleum products declined 13.16 percent to $1.488 billion and imports of fertiliser, insecticides and plastic materials inched down 0.12 percent to $1.2 billion.