Pakistan’s Exports to Afghanistan Surge by 92% in Ten Months

The State Bank of Pakistan has announced that in the first six months of the 2024-2025 fiscal year, the country’s exports to Afghanistan have increased by 92% compared to the previous year.

Some Pakistani media outlets have reported that the total value of Pakistan’s exports to Afghanistan has surpassed $504 million from July to December of the current fiscal year.

During the same period, Pakistan’s imports from Afghanistan have also increased by 125.85%.

Meanwhile, the Ministry of Industry and Commerce of the Islamic Emirate has reported that in the first ten months of the 1403 solar year, trade between Afghanistan and Pakistan amounted to $2.065 billion.

Akhundzada Abdul Salam Jawad, the spokesperson for the Ministry of Industry and Commerce, stated: “The Islamic Emirate of Afghanistan and the Islamic Republic of Pakistan conducted a total trade of $2.065 billion over the past ten months of 1403. Of this, $655 million accounted for exports, while imports stood at $1.4 billion.”

However, some Afghan traders and industrialists are urging Pakistan to remove barriers on Afghan exports to ensure trade balance between the two countries.

Zalmai Azimi, an Afghan businessman, said: “Pakistan has increased taxes on transit goods coming from Karachi to Afghanistan. We call on Pakistani officials to address our concerns.”

Abdul Jabar Safi, head of the Kabul Industrialists Association, stated: “We need to work on two fronts: first, controlling imports, and second, increasing our exports.”

Among Afghanistan’s key exports to Pakistan are coal, onions, cotton, tomatoes, and pomegranates. Meanwhile, industrial and consumer goods such as rice, medical drugs, cement, sugar, textile products, and fresh fruits are imported from Pakistan to Afghanistan.