Oil imports climb 30.4pc in 10 months

KARACHI: Imports of petroleum products soared 30.4 percent to $11.44 billion in the first 10 months of the current fiscal year of 2017/18 as oil prices continued to post recovery from the 2014’s lows, official data showed on Monday.

Pakistan Bureau of Statistics (PBS) data showed that imports of petroleum products increased from $8.78 billion in the corresponding period a year earlier.

The second highest imports were of machinery, amounting $9.51 billion

in the July-April period of the outgoing fiscal year.

Machinery imports, however, fell 3.4 percent from $9.84 billion in the corresponding period a year earlier as imports related to more than $57 billion China-Pakistan Economic Corridor (CPEC) project – energy projects account for major component in CPEC – are slowing down.

A number of energy projects are under implementation stage.

PBS data showed that import of agriculture and other chemicals increased 15.71 percent to $7.22 billion in the July-April period.

Food imports marginally rose 2.32 percent to $5.22 billion in the period under review.

Metal imports surged 24.4 percent to $4.45 billion. Imports of cars, motorcycles, buses and other transportation means jumped 32.2 percent to $3.5 billion. Textile imports increased 5.7 percent to $2.89 billion.