ISLAMABAD: The Pakistan Bureau of Statistics (PBS) has reported a substantial 30 percent increase in overall machinery imports during the first three quarters of the fiscal year 2023-24 compared to the same period last year.
Total imports of the machinery group from July to March 2023-24 reached $5,854.931 million, a significant rise from $4,493.283 million in the corresponding period of the previous year.
Key highlights of the import growth include a remarkable surge in agriculture sector machinery and equipment by 102.31 percent, office machinery including data processing equipment by 41.28 percent, electrical machinery and apparatus by 68.69 percent, telecom-related equipment by 117.90 percent, mobile phones by 181.26 percent, and other apparatus by 14.05 percent.
However, certain categories experienced a decline in imports during this period, such as construction and mining machinery by 4.47 percent, textile machinery by 63.68 percent, power-generating equipment by 25.63 percent, and other machinery by 14 percent.
The data also reveals a substantial year-on-year increase of 139.62 percent in machinery imports during March 2024 compared to the same month last year, reaching $811.865 million.
Furthermore, on a month-on-month basis, machinery imports rose by 17.78 percent in March 2024 compared to January 2024, reflecting a positive trend in Pakistan’s machinery sector growth for the fiscal year.
