Pakistan's textile exports registered an impressive growth of 11.11% year-on-year (YoY) in April 2025, but on a month-on-month (MoM) basis, shipments were almost flat as they rose only 0.043%.
According to data released by the State Bank of Pakistan (SBP) on Friday, textile exports for April 2025 came in at $1.444 billion against the April 2024 figure of $1.3 billion and previous month's shipments worth $1.443 billion.
During the first 10 months (July-April) of financial year 2024-25, textile exports reached $14.48 billion against exports of $13.56 billion in the corresponding period of last year, showing an increase of 6.8%.
As per industry stakeholders, this slight upward trend for textile exports is a positive sign for the entire sector. They pointed out that the whole world was in a wait-and-see mode due to the new tariff structure imposed by US President Donald Trump. At present, a 90-day pause is in place, during which America's trading partners will negotiate with the Trump administration for tariff reduction.
During the first week of April, Trump imposed higher tariffs on imports from 57 countries, ranging from 11% to 50%, which were to come into effect on April 9, but the levies were immediately suspended for 90 days for all countries except China. A 10% minimum tariff and 25% sector-specific tariffs remain in force.
On Pakistan, the US has imposed 29% reciprocal tariffs, saying that Islamabad charges 58% tariffs on goods import from America. Pakistani authorities have recently offered a zero-tariff bilateral trade agreement with the US after Trump intervened and negotiated a ceasefire between Pakistan and India, using trade as an important tool.
Textile-sector experts believe Pakistan can create opportunities by establishing a clear mechanism, but if policymakers fail to devise a strategy, India, which also offers zero tariffs to the US, may take benefit.
They said that the sector was facing huge challenges and was trying to come out of a state of crisis as energy bills were still haunting them. If Trump approves Pakistan's zero tariff proposal, it is widely expected that trade balance between the two counties will further go in favour of the US, as imported products, especially textile, will be available at much cheaper prices.
"We may lose in the textile sector as we lack value addition, though our sector is trying to work hard. This deal should create a win-win situation for both countries, but one thing is clear – this important sector may not produce desired results without the government's support in terms of subsidies and tax reduction," a textile miller remarked.
"We may exceed previous year's textile exports of $16.31 billion this year, but if textile chain is not integrated with a clear policy, we may lose exports next year."
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