The effect of Covid-19 on Pakistan’s exports to its nine regional countries caused a drop of over 5.7 percent in the first nine months of the current fiscal year, according to data released by the State Bank of Pakistan on Monday.
Pakistan’s exports to these countries — Afghanistan, China, Bangladesh, Sri Lanka, India, Iran, Nepal, Bhutan, and the Maldives — equal $2.788 billion, or 14.91 percent of the country’s total global exports of $18.688 billion in 9MFY21.
In terms of Pakistan’s exports to its neighbors, China tops the list, leaving India and Bangladesh in second and third place, respectively. Pakistan’s border trade with Nepal, Sri Lanka, Bhutan, Bangladesh, and the Maldives was conducted entirely by sea.
The country’s trade deficit with the region, on the other hand, narrowed marginally during the period under study, as imports from these countries also fell.
