Oil Imports Register Slight Increase in July-January
ISLAMABAD: Pakistan’s oil imports increased only 1.35% in the first seven months of the current fiscal year to $9.46 billion from $9.33 billion during the corresponding period last year, as per data released by the Pakistan Bureau of Statistics (PBS).
While the imports of oil increased marginally, other categories of imports also increased. These include petroleum items, consumer items, and raw materials that all registered greater imports during the July-January period of 2024-25.
Overall, the import bill of Pakistan increased 7.08% year-on-year to $33.08 billion. The increase was primarily because of the greater arrival of raw materials, textile items, agriculture products, machines, and vehicles.
Key Import Trends
Crude Oil: The most significant rise in oil imports was from crude oil, which increased by 4.98%. The overall weight of crude oil imported rose by 18.20%, from 4.89 million tonnes to 5.78 million tonnes.
Petroleum Products: Despite a decline in the value of petroleum products by 3.69%, the weight imported rose by 10.72% to 6.15 million tonnes.
LNG and LPG: Imports of liquefied petroleum gas (LPG) grew by a significant 47.54%, whereas imports of liquefied natural gas (LNG) declined by 4.17%.
Machinery and Agriculture Imports
Machinery: Machinery imports increased by 16.17%, to $5.06 billion. Increased imports of textile machinery, electrical machinery, and construction machinery spurred the rise. For instance, textile machinery imports rose by 60.36%, and construction machinery by 54%.
Agriculture: Fertilizer imports fell by 7.08%, and insecticide imports fell by 26.69%. In contrast, plastic material imports increased by 7.61%, and medicinal product imports increased by 15.23%.
Other Import Categories
Telecommunication Products: Telecommunication item imports, particularly mobile phones, fell by 4.18%. Mobile phone imports alone fell by 12.04%, primarily because of increased taxes.
Transport and Vehicles: The transport industry experienced a positive growth of 20.96% due to the importation of vehicles in completely knocked down (CKD) and completely built-up (CBU) units.
Overall, while oil imports registered a minimal increase, other industries like machinery, agriculture, and transport experienced significant growth in imports in the first seven months of the 2024 fiscal year.
