Imports of gold increased in the first five months of the current fiscal year i-e 2022-23 (FY-23) by 26.43% compared to the same months of the last fiscal year i-e 2021-22 (FY-22). According to the data released by the Pakistan Bureau of Statistics (PBS), in the months of July through November, USD 11.172 million worth of gold was imported into the country compared to USD 8.837 million worth in the corresponding period of the last fiscal year.

Pakistan imported 193 kilograms of gold in the first five months of FY-23 compared to 148 kilograms in the same months of FY-22. This showed a decrease of 30.41% in the import of actual quantity of gold. On a year-on-year basis (YoY), the imports of gold saw a decrease of 31.79% for the month of November. The imports were recorded at USD 2.189 million in November, 2022 as against of USD 3.209 million in November, 2021. In actual quantity, the imports of gold fell from 55 kilograms in November 2021 to 35 kilograms in November 2022.

Meanwhile, on a month-on-month (MoM) basis, the gold imports during November, 2022 decreased by 11.05% when compared to USD 2.461 million in October, 2022. Gold imports came down by 14.63% in November, 2022 compared to 41 kilogram recorded in October, 2022. Merchandise trade deficit also came down during the first five months of FY-23 by 30.14% and was recorded at USD 14,406 million this fiscal year as against the deficit of USD 20,621 million in FY-22.

The data also showed that the exports from July through November (2022-23) were recorded at USD 11,932 million as against USD 12,362 million in the same months of FY-22, registering a decline of 3.48%. On the other hand, the imports of the country declined by 20.15% during the period under review, going down from USD 32,983 million last fiscal year to USD 26,338 million during the current fiscal year.

Credit : Independent News Pakistan-WealthPk