Karachi October 21 2024: In September 2024, Pakistan’s current account balance remained positive registering a surplus of USD 119 million compared to USD 29 million recorded in August 2024, according to data released by State Bank of Pakistan.
The balance of trade in goods remained in deficit, but the deficit narrowed by 8.3 percent, falling to USD 2,046 million from USD 2,232 million in August. This improvement was driven by a rise in exports and a slight decline in imports. Exports of goods reached USD 2,645 million, marking a 6.8 percent increase from the USD 2,477 million in August. On the other hand, imports of goods experienced a 0.4 percent reduction, dropping from USD 4,709 million in August to USD 4,619 million in September.
In the services sector, the balance also remained in deficit, but the gap narrowed. The balance on trade in services showed a USD 226 million deficit in September, a 19.9 percent decrease compared to the USD 282 million deficit in August. While exports of services increased by 6.5 percent to USD 657 million, the imports of services decreased by 1.8 percent, rising to USD 883 million.
The balance on primary income deteriorated in September, with the deficit increasing by 19.5 percent. It worsened from a deficit of USD 559 million in August to USD 668 million in September due to higher interest and dividend repatriation. Meanwhile, the balance on secondary income, which includes remittances, showed a slight negative performance. Remittances decreased by 3.2 percent, falling to USD 2,849 million from USD 2,943 million, the overall secondary income balance remained at USD 3,059 million.
As a result of these movements, Pakistan’s current account balance for September 2024 turned positive, registering a USD 119 million surplus, continuing the positive momentum of last month.
When looking at the cumulative numbers for the first quarter of FY25 (July-September), Pakistan’s current account balance stood at a deficit of USD 98 million, showing improvement compared to the USD 1,241 million deficit in the same period of FY24. This change was largely driven by a stronger secondary income balance, which increased by 39.6 percent, due to notable rise in remittances by 38.7 percent over the same period last year. However, the balance of trade in goods worsened by 25.9 percent YoY, with the trade deficit in goods expanding to USD 6,723 million from USD 5,336 million in the same period of FY24.
