Raza Khan

Pakistan’s textile exports declined by 15% during July 2023 against the same month of last year, according to provisional data released by All Pakistan Textiles Mills Association (APTMA). Data shows that the country’s textile exports were registered at $1.31 billion during July 2023 against $1.54 billion during July 2022. Textile exports also dropped by 10.88% during the month under review against the preceding month of June 2023, when export volume was at $1.47 billion.

According to APTMA, Pakistan’s textile exports were at $9.09 billion during the first seven months (January-July) of calendar year 2023 against $11.48 billion during the corresponding period of 2022, with a decline of 21%. Pakistan’s textile exports represented 63.68% of the country’s total exports during the month under review. The country’s total exports were recorded at $2.057 billion during July 2023 against $2.250 billion during the same month of last year.

Asad Naqvi, senior analyst at APTMA, told WealthPK that energy shortages, high electricity tariffs, elevated financing costs and global slowdown were major factors behind decline in textile exports during recent months. Naqvi added that the country’s textile sector also suffered from reduced cotton production. “Textile sector needed around 12 million bales of cotton last year while local production was just 5 million bales,” he pointed out. He said that the ban on imports due to limited foreign exchange reserves in the country also added to the miseries of the textile exporters during the last few months.

According to the Economic Survey of Pakistan 2022-23, global economic slowdown decreased the demand for Pakistani textile products. It said that last year’s flood resulted in losses for the cotton industry in the shape of damage to crops. Turnaround time of raw materials is identified as another problem for Pakistani textile sector. Importing raw material, processing it, and re-exporting takes five to six months in Pakistan, while it takes only one or two months in Bangladesh, the Economic Survey said. The unsatisfactory performance of textile products may also be attributed to limited access to technology, ineffective image building and brand-development strategies. Pakistan achieved its highest-ever textile exports of $19.329 billion during the fiscal year 2021-22.

However, textile sector couldn’t sustain the trend of positive growth, and exports declined by 14.63% during FY23. According to the Board of Investment (BoI), Pakistan is the eighth largest exporter of textile products in Asia. It is also the fourth-largest producer and third-largest consumer of cotton. Textile comprises 46% of the total manufacturing sector and provides employment to 40% of the total labour force. According to Textile and Apparel Policy 2020-25, the target of textile exports is $31 billion for the fiscal year 2023-24.

Credit: INP-WealthPk