Pakistan’s goods exports rise 17.6pc in September to USD2.94bn

Pakistan’s goods exports rose 17.6 per cent year-on-year in September to USD2.94 billion, up from USD2.50 billion in the same month last year, according to figures shared by Advisor to Finance Minister Khurram Schehzad.

Exports also grew 16.1pc month-on-month, from USD2.53bn in August. Export growth outpaced import growth both year-on-year and month-on-month in September, a sign of strengthening momentum.

Exports for the first quarter of the 2026-27 fiscal year (July to September) totalled $8.42bn, up 10.8pc from the same period last year. That is nearly $825 million more than Pakistan exported in the first three months of the previous fiscal year.

The gains were spread across the major export categories. In the first quarter, agriculture and food exports rose 23pc year-on-year, while manufacturing, mining and energy exports grew 17pc. Textiles and apparel, the country’s largest export segment, recorded a smaller increase of 6pc.

September itself saw particularly sharp movements. Agriculture and food exports surged 62pc year-on-year, while manufacturing grew 35pc compared with August.

Schehzad said double-digit growth of nearly 11pc in the first quarter, supported by gains across all major sectors, marked an encouraging start to the fiscal year. He said it supported Pakistan’s broader objective of moving towards export-led, sustainable growth.

He added that the sustained rise in exports was an important positive despite regional challenges, with Pakistan exporting materially more than a year ago and momentum accelerating strongly in September.

Dual-tranche Eurobond

On September 3, Pakistan raised a record $3 billion through a dual-tranche Eurobond sale in September, marking its largest single international capital market transaction. The issue attracted nearly $6bn in orders from a broad and geographically diverse base of institutional investors, according to the Ministry of Finance.

The transaction comprised $1.75bn in 5.5-year bonds carrying a 7.5 per cent coupon and $1.25bn in 10-year bonds at 7.9pc. Strong demand for the longer-dated paper was seen by the ministry as a sign of renewed investor interest in Pakistan’s improving macroeconomic and credit position.

The latest issue was the first under Pakistan’s renewed Global Medium-Term Note programme and followed the country’s inaugural Panda Bond and improvements in its sovereign credit profile. The government said its broader strategy was to diversify funding sources, extend debt maturities, reduce refinancing risks and replace shorter-term or more expensive obligations where economically beneficial.

The latest sale followed a $500m three-year Eurobond issued in April at a 6.975pc coupon. Strong demand allowed the government to increase that issue to $750m through a green-shoe option. Pakistan also repaid a $1.4bn Eurobond that matured in April.

The government said successive credit-rating upgrades and renewed market access over the past three years had helped rebuild investor confidence. It described the latest transaction as part of efforts to strengthen sovereign debt management and establish longer-term financing benchmarks.

The five- and 10-year tranches also extended the maturity profile beyond the three-year bond issued in April, providing a broader range of financing options for Pakistan in international debt markets.