Pakistan-Afghanistan transit trade goes up 9% in two months

Pakistan’s transit trade with Afghanistan increased to $209 million in the first two months of the current financial year (July-August), a 9% rise from $191 million during the same period last year.

The growth was mainly due to a 10% rise in Afghan imports passing through Pakistan, which went up from $187 million to $205 million.

However, reverse transit — Afghan exports via Pakistan — decreased by 3% from $3.9 million to $3.8 million, highlighting an imbalance in two-way transit activity.

On a year-on-year basis, August marked a strong growth in trade, with transit volumes rising 13% to $107.3 million from $94.5 million in the same month last year. Forward transit —movement from Pakistan to Afghanistan — remained the key driver, surging 15% to $106 million, while reverse transit plunged 51%, falling to just $1.3 million from $2.53 million.

In a month-on-month (MoM) comparison, transit trade also strengthened, growing 8% from $100.4 million in July to $108.6 million in August. Notably, reverse transit saw an impressive 118% jump, climbing from $1.2 million to $2.6 million, suggesting some volatility but renewed momentum in Afghan exports through Pakistan.

Bilateral trade strengthens in FY25

According to data from Pakistan’s Federal Board of Revenue (FBR), bilateral goods trade between Pakistan and Afghanistan rose 25% year-on-year in FY 2024–25, reaching $1.9 billion from $1.6 billion in the previous fiscal year.

This growth was powered by a 31% surge in Pakistan’s exports, which grew from $1.06 billion to $1.39 billion, indicating robust demand for Pakistani goods. Imports from Afghanistan also rose 13% from $539 million to $607 million.

In the two months of FY26, the bilateral trade volume stood at $282 million, showing a marginal 1% YoY increase. While exports declined slightly by 1% — from $193 million to $190 million — imports rose 8% from $85 million to $91 million.

In August, bilateral trade totaled $143 million, marking a 4% MoM increase from July. The growth was fueled by a near 50% jump in imports from Afghanistan —from $37 million to $55 million, while exports fell 13% from $102 million to $88 million.