Exports up 5.37% in January; pharmaceutical and engineering sector contribute significantly

According to provisional figures of the Ministry of Commerce, the country’s exports grew by 5.37 percent to $27.24 billion in January 2021, mainly contributed by the pharmaceutical and engineering sector.

According to the data, imports increased by two percent to USD 42 billion during this period, thus the country’s trade deficit stood at USD 14.75 billion in the month under review. During this period, exports grew by 16.4 percent of pharmaceuticals and about 19 percent by engineering sector.

There was a slight increase in December 2020 also

In the month of December also there was a slight increase in exports. In December 2020, exports had increased marginally to $27.15 billion. Imports during this period increased by 7.56 percent to $42.59 billion. Thus, the trade deficit widened to $15.44 billion. This information was given in the official data released by the government. In December 2019, the country’s goods exports stood at $27.11 billion and imports at $39.59 billion. At the same time, gold imports had increased by 81.82 percent to reach $4.48 billion.

There is a boom in economic activity

At the same time, exports in November had registered a greater decline than in October. Exports were down by 5.12 percent in October, but in November they dropped by 8.74 to reach a value of $23.52 million. In November, exports of petroleum products, engineering goods, chemicals and gems and jewelry showed a sharp decline. Economic activity is gaining momentum again due to reduced corona cases and vaccination across the world.