The Pakistan Retail Business Council (PRBC) has issued an urgent appeal to the Prime Minister following the release of devastating trade figures for the first half of the current fiscal year. With the trade deficit ballooning to $19.2 billion—a 35% increase over last year—the Council warns that current fiscal and monetary policies are eroding the competitiveness of Pakistan’s export base.
Exports further plunge but imports cross $6 billion a month !
Pakistan has booked over $19 billion trade deficit during the first half of the current fiscal year as exports further plunged and imports increased faster than projections on the back of trade liberalisation, keeping…
— Shahbaz Rana (@81ShahbazRana) January 3, 2026
A Sector Under Siege
The latest data from the Pakistan Bureau of Statistics (PBS) confirms a fifth consecutive month of export decline, with December figures plunging by over 20% compared to the previous year. Chairman Ziad Bashir noted that the combination of trade liberalization and an overvalued rupee has created an environment where imports are surging (up 11.3%) while local production is being priced out of the global market.
FBR Scrutiny: “A Troubling Signal”
The PRBC specifically highlighted the recent directives from the Federal Board of Revenue (FBR) to scrutinize the income tax returns of major exporters. This move comes at a time when the sector is already grappling with:
- Regionally uncompetitive energy tariffs.
- High interest rates and financing costs.
- One of the highest effective tax burdens in the area.
“The issuance of broad, open-ended scrutiny instructions sends a deeply troubling signal to the business community,” stated Chairman Bashir in a formal letter to the Prime Minister. “Instead of facilitation, the industry is facing a regime of suspicion that discourages the very growth the country desperately needs to stabilize its foreign exchange reserves.”
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The Council is calling for an immediate review of the exchange rate regime to reflect ground realities and a cessation of “desk audits” that target the backbone of Pakistan’s foreign currency earnings. Without a strategic pivot, the PRBC warns that the annual trade deficit targets will remain out of reach, further straining the national economy.
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