ISLAMABAD: Pakistan’s fruit exports have surged significantly, marking a 17.85 per cent increase in the first ten months of the current fiscal year compared to the corresponding period last year, reports the Pakistan Bureau of Statistics (PBS).
Data from PBS indicates that fruit exports from July 2023 to April 2024 reached $274.23 million, up from $232.7 million during the same period in 2022-2023, signaling robust growth in the agricultural export sector.
In April 2024 alone, fruit exports spiked by 29.32 per cent year-on-year, totaling $8.16 million compared to $6.31 million in April 2023. However, there was a sharp month-on-month decline of 58.51 per cent, with fruit exports dropping to $8.16 million from $19.63 million in March 2024.
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Overall merchandise exports for the first ten months of fiscal year 2023-24 surged by 9.10 per cent, amounting to $25.28 billion, compared to $23.17 billion during the same period last year. Conversely, imports decreased by 4.09 per cent to $44.79 billion from $46.71 billion last year, resulting in a 17.09 per cent reduction in the trade deficit to $19.51 billion from $23.54 billion.
These figures highlight a favorable trend in Pakistan’s trade balance, driven by increased exports and reduced imports, underscoring the nation’s ongoing efforts to strengthen its export sector and lessen dependence on imports.
