Textile and clothing exports continued their upward trajectory for the second consecutive month in January, as per data released by the Pakistan Bureau of Statistics (PBS) on Friday.
The sector’s exports experienced a notable increase of 10.10 percent, reaching $1.45 billion in January compared to $1.32 billion in the corresponding month last year. On a month-on-month basis, exports saw a 3.33 percent rise.
Despite this positive trend, textile and clothing exports faced challenges in the first seven months of FY24, witnessing a decline of 2.99 percent to $9.73 billion from $10.03 billion during the same period last year. The decrease was attributed to rising production costs, driven by increased energy costs and a liquidity crunch.
The sustainability of this recent growth trend in the coming months remains uncertain.
Earlier announcements from the Ministry of Commerce regarding offering regionally competitive energy prices to textile exporters and resolving cash flow issues by releasing pending sales tax refunds have yet to be implemented.
