Pakistan's merchandise exports declined by 8.70% in the first half of FY2025-26, while imports climbed more than 11%, pushing the trade deficit up by 34.57% to $19.204bn and intensifying pressure on the external account.

According to data released by the Pakistan Bureau of Statistics, exports totalled $15.184bn during July-December 2025-26, compared with $16.631bn in the corresponding period last year.

Imports, in contrast, rose from $30.902bn to $34.388bn over the same six-month period, reflecting an increase of 11.28%. The divergence between declining export earnings and expanding import expenditure significantly widened the trade imbalance compared with the $14.271bn deficit recorded a year earlier.

Monthly figures underscore the strain. In December 2025, exports fell 20.41% year-on-year to $2.317bn, down from $2.911bn in December 2024.

Imports during the same month increased by 2%, reaching $6.022bn compared with $5.904bn a year earlier.

On a month-on-month basis, outbound shipments slipped 4.26% from $2.420bn in November 2025. Meanwhile, imports rose 13.49% from $5.306bn recorded in November.

The latest data point to a widening external trade gap during the first half of the fiscal year, driven by contracting export revenues alongside expanding import demand.