With Pakistan’s textile sector expanding production capacity to meet demand from foreign buyers, textile companies have received export orders for the next six months. As per Adil Bashir, Chairman, All Pakistan Textile Mills Association (APTMA), Pakistan’s textile sector is currently in the mode of rapid expansion to cater with increased orders and demands. The sector accounts for more than 60 percent of total $6 billion export orders fetched from abroad during the five months of the current fiscal year, said the Pakistan Bureau of Statistics.

Textile companies are making capital investments to increase production of fabrics with demand from value-added sector on a strong recovery path compared to stagnation couple of months back due to economic shutdown. The growth was despite the global economic slowdown caused by the pandemic-related lockdown and waning consumer demand. However, the government’s decision to keep businesses open is leading to benefits of orders diverted from closed economies, while US-China rift is also diverting orders to Pakistan.

APTMA also appreciated the much-improved gas supply and pressures of gas and re-gasified liquefied natural gas (RLNG) to the export sector units in December. While the government decided to curtail gas quota for RLNG-based power plants to 240 million metric cubic feet per day (mmcfd) from 350 mmcfd, export-oriented and consumer sectors have been put on the priority list.