Merchandise exports declined for the seventh consecutive month in August to $34.48 billion, a fall of 6.86 per cent from the year-ago period mainly due to subdued global demand for petroleum and gems and jewellery sectors.
Data released by the Ministry of Commerce and Industry Friday showed that imports also declined for the ninth month in the row by 5.23 per cent to $58.64 billion, which means that the trade deficit, the gap between exports and imports, stood at $24.16 billion in August, a ten-month high.
Excluding gems and jewellery and petroleum, exports in August were $26 billion compared to $25.02 billion last year. Cumulatively, exports during April-August contracted by 11.9 per cent to $172.95 billion. Imports during the five-month period fell by 12 per cent to $271.83 billion. The trade deficit narrowed to $98.88 billion against $112.85 billion during April-August 2022.
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