Services Trade Deficit Shrinks 43pc In FY20

The country's services trade deficit witnessed sharp decline of 42.96 percent during the financial year 2019-20 as compared to the corresponding period of last year

ISLAMABAD, (UrduPoint / Pakistan Point News - 7th Aug, 2020 ) :The country's services trade deficit witnessed sharp decline of 42.96 percent during the financial year 2019-20 as compared to the corresponding period of last year.

During the period under review, the country's services exports declined by 8.66 percent, whereas services' imports narrowed by 24.25 percent, according to trade statistics released by the Pakistan Bureau of Statistics (PBS).

The exports were recorded at $5.449 billion, as against the exports of $5.966 billion during the same period of last year. Similarly, services' imports went down from $10.936 billion to $8.284 billion.

Based on the figures, the country's services trade deficit during the period under review was recorded at $2.834 billion, as against the deficit of $4.969 billion during last year.

On a year-on-year basis, the country's exports decreased by 9.86 percent in June 2020 as compared to the same month of last year. The exports during June 2020 were recorded at $402.04 million, as against the exports of $446 million in June 2019.

The imports also witnessed a decrease of 19.73 percent, from $789.94 million in June 2019 to $634.10 million in June 2020.

On a month-on-month basis, the services' exports from the country increased by 5.51 percent in June 2020 when compared to the exports of $381.03 million in May 2020. On the other hand, imports into the country increased by 61.36 percent in June 2020 when compared to the imports of $392.98 million in February.

Meanwhile, Pakistan's merchandize trade deficit witnessed a reduction of 10.24pc during the first month (July) of the current fiscal year (2020-21), as compared to the corresponding month of last year.

The country's deficit in July 2020 stood at $1.640 billion, as against the deficit of $1.827 billion in July 2019.

During the month under review, Pakistan's exports registered an increase of 6.04 percent, from $1.886 billion last year to $2 billion, whereas imports declined from $3.713 billion to $3.640 billion (1.97 percent)