As per provisional figures from The State Bank of Pakistan, textile trade surplus dropped year-on-year in 2017 up to December by 1.9 per cent due to imports rising by a larger amount and at faster pace than exports. Exports rose 4.5 per cent to $12.93bn as against $12.37bn the year before. The main segment increase in exports came from an increase in exported readymade garments, knitwear, bed wear, cotton yarn and towels.

From January to December 2017, Pakistan largely exported knitwear, readymade garments, bedding and cotton cloth. All together, they account for over two-thirds (71 per cent) of the total value of export, with readymade garments and knitwear each accounting for 19 per cent of total export receipts and bedding accounting for 17 per cent of total export receipts. Import payments rose 22.4 per cent to $3.98bn as against $3.25bn the year before. The bulk of the increase came from ‘other textile items’ followed by synthetic fibre, synthetic and artificial silk yarns, and worn clothing. Raw cotton made up the bulk of Pakistan’s textile import payments, making up one-fifth of its total value. Synthetic and artificial silk yarn accounts for 17 per cent, while 13 per cent of textile import value came from synthetic fibre. Worn clothing accounts for just 2 per cent of the total import value. All other textile items account for 47 per cent of the total import value.