Rice exports increases 11.09%, reaches $1.257 billion in 8 months

Rice exports from the country during last eight months of current financial year increased by 11.09% as compared the exports of the corresponding period of last year.

During the period from July-February, 2019-20 about 2,763,171 metric tons of rice worth $1.397 billion exported as against the exports of 2,497,536 metric tons valuing $1.257 billion of same period last year.

According the data released by Pakistan Bureau of Statistics, exports of basmati rice grew by 36,56% as above mentioned commodity worth $501.179 million was also exported as compared the exports of $366.765 million of same period of last year.

In last 8 months country exported about 566,711 metric tons of basmati rice as compared the exports of 370,248 metric tons of same period last year, the data reveled.

Meanwhile, country manged to export about 2,196,460 metric tons of rice other then basmati worth of $896.312 million as against the exports of 2,127,288 metric tons valuing $891.230 million of same period last year, it added.

The exports of rice other then basmati in last 8 months of current financial year grew by 0.57% as compared the exports of the corresponding period of last year, it added.

It may be recalled here that overall food group exports from the country during last 8 months grew by 5.48% as food commodities worth $3.033 billion exported as against $2.875 billion of same period last year.

On month on month basis, the food group exports also witnessed 4.09% growth in month of February, 2020 as country fetched $424.748 million by exporting the food commodities, which was recorded at $408.072 million of same month of last year.

On the other hand food group imports into the country also decreased by 8.07% as it came down from $3.868 billion of first 8 months of last financial year to $3.556 billion in 8 months of current financial year.

Pharmaceutical goods’ export increase 7.21% in 8 months 

The export of pharmaceutical goods from the country witness an increase of 7.21 percent during the first eight months of current financial year (2019-20) as compared to the export of corresponding period of last year.

The pharmaceutical exports were recorded at US $149.540 million during July-February (2019-20) as against the export of US $139.487 million during July-February (2018-19), showing growth of 7.21 percent, according to the Pakistan Bureau of Statistics (PBS).

In term of quantity, the export of pharmaceutical products also increased by 11.08 percent by going up from 8,568 metric ton to 9,517 metric ton, according to the data.

Meanwhile, year- on- year basis the pharmaceutical export also grew by 27.44 percent during the month of February 2020 as compared to the same month of last year.

The pharmaceutical exports in February 2020 were recorded at US $ 20.303 million against the export of $15.932 million in February 2019, the PBS data revealed.

On month- on- month basis, the exports of pharmaceutical product increase by 19.44 percent in February 2020 when compared to $16.999 million in January 2019.

It is pertinent to mention here that the country’s merchandise trade deficit plunged by 26.06 percent during the first eight months of the current fiscal year (2019-20) as compared to the deficit of the same month of last year.

During the period under review, the country’s exports registered about 3.62 percent growth, whereas imports reduces by 13.81 percent, according the foreign trade statistics, released by the Pakistan Bureau of Statistics (PBS).

During the period from July-February (2019-20), exports reached to US $15.643 billion against the exports of US $15.097 billion of the same period of last year, it added.

Meanwhile, the country’s imports witnessed significant decrease of 13.81 % as these went down from US $36.563 billion in first eight months of last financial year to US $ 31.515 billion of same period of current financial year, it said.