ISLAMABAD: Pakistan’s trade deficit with nine neighbouring countries widened by 32.82 per cent to $11.17 billion during the first 11 months of the current fiscal year (FY25), up from $8.41bn in the same period a year earlier, official data showed.

While exports to Afghanistan, Bangladesh and Sri Lanka recorded notable growth — buoyed in part by changing political dynamics in the region — the overall trade gap continued to expand due to surging imports, particularly from China, India and Bangladesh.

The most concerning trend for policymakers remains the sustained decline in exports to China, Pakistan’s largest trading partner in the region, despite imports from the country........

© Dawn Business