Raza Khan

Pakistan’s exports to Europe grew by 12.72 percent to $2.888 billion during the first quarter (July-September) of the current fiscal year against $2.562 billion in the corresponding period of the last year, reports WealthPK.

Despite a decline of 5.44% in exports, the United Kingdom (UK) remained the largest market in Europe with exports value of $519.87 million during the period under review. Exports to the UK were recorded $549.82 million during the first quarter of the last fiscal year as per the ministry of commerce data.

Exports to Germany rose to $455.77 million in July-September 2022-23 from $406.29 million during the corresponding months of the last year, with an increase of 12.17%, making it the second-largest exports’ destination for Pakistan in the European Continent.

With a surge of 14.8%, export to the Netherlands registered $377.28 million during the quarter under review against $328.654 million in the corresponding period of the last year. Goods worth $324.58 million were shipped to Spain during Q1 this year as compared to $225.08 million in the same period of 2021, posting a significant growth of 44.20%.

Exports to Italy rose to $308.17 million during the period under review from $252.77 million in the corresponding quarter of the preceding year, showing an increase of 12.91%. Italy registered as the fifth-largest market for Pakistan’s goods in July-September.

Exports to Belgium, France, Denmark, Sweden and Switzerland were recorded $197.68nmillion, $153.5 million, $75.31million, $46.24 million, and $51.04 million respectively during July-September.

Exports to Europe in Q1 also grew by 8.15% in September 2022 against the same month of the last year. Exports in September registered $981.53 million against $907.52 million during the corresponding month of the last year.

The overall exports to Europe were registered $11.103 billion during the last fiscal year (2021-22) compared to $9.111 billion in 2020-21, with an increase of $21.86%. The UK remained the largest market for Pakistani good during the last fiscal year. The exports’ value to the UK was registered $2.2 billion in 2021-22 against 2.048 billion in 2020-21, with a surge of 7.42%.

According to the data, Europe is Pakistan’s largest export destination as a continent, while the European Union (EU) as a region is also the biggest market for exports. According to the Pakistan Business Council (PBC), Pakistan’s exports to Europe are dominated by textiles and clothing, accounting for around 70% of total exports in recent years.

Around a quarter of these exports are bed linen, table linen and toilet and kitchen linen. Cotton, leather’s goods, sports’ goods, plastic, rice, and cereals are also among the top export items to Europe.

Pakistan is also a major beneficiary of the trading opportunities offered by the EU Generalised Scheme of Preferences (GSP+) and is getting benefits from generous tariff preferences (mostly zero duties on two thirds of all product categories) under the GSP+ arrangement aiming to support sustainable development.

Credit : Independent News Pakistan-WealthPk