Pakistan
Pakistan witnessed a substantial surge in its information technology (IT) exports, soaring by 37% year-on-year (YoY) and 19% month-on-month (MoM) to $306 million in March 2024.
This surge marks the highest-ever exports recorded in a single month, surpassing the previous peak of $303 million in December 2023. Additionally, these March exports outstrip the 12-month average of $238 million.
According to research by Topline Pakistan, this remarkable annual growth in IT exports can be attributed to several factors. Firstly, the State Bank of Pakistan (SBP) raised the permissible retention limit from 35% to 50% in the Exporters’ Specialized Foreign Currency Accounts, facilitating repatriation of foreign income by IT companies. Secondly, a stable local currency encouraged these companies to deposit their earnings in local accounts.
During the first nine months (July-March) of the ongoing fiscal year, IT exports amounted to $2.28 billion, marking a notable 17% YoY increase from the $1.94 billion recorded in the same period of the previous fiscal year.
Furthermore, net IT exports (exports minus imports) experienced a robust 37% YoY and 20% MoM growth, reaching $275 million in March 2024. These net exports in March also exceeded the 12-month average of $208 million. Over the 9MFY24 period, net IT exports surged by 16% YoY to $1.99 billion.
In a recent interview, Finance Minister Muhammad Aurangzeb expressed optimism about the sector’s performance, predicting that IT exports could reach $3.5 billion by the end of the year. However, some analysts suggest that while there has been significant growth in gross IT exports during 9MFY24, achieving the government’s ambitious target may pose challenges. They anticipate that gross IT exports for FY24 may settle around $3.0 billion, compared to $2.6 billion in the previous fiscal year.
