Remittances of $14.77b near four-month trade deficit
State Bank data show October inflows at a four-month high of $3.9 billion, with Saudi Arabia and the UAE supplying about 45.5% of the four-month total.
Pakistan received $14.77 billion in workers' remittances during the first four months of FY27, against a merchandise trade deficit of $14.6 billion in the same period, figures released by the State Bank of Pakistan on Tuesday showed.
October alone brought $3.9 billion, the highest monthly inflow recorded so far this fiscal year. That was 13.8% above the $3.42 billion received in October last year and 8.5% above the $3.59 billion of September.
The four-month total rose 14% from $12.96 billion in the same July to October period a year earlier. The trade deficit widened 16% year on year over those four months, according to JS Global Head of Equity Research and Senior Vice President Waqas Ghani.
"Overseas Pakistanis just covered almost the entire trade deficit, again," Ghani said. "Remittances are buying Pakistan time. The question is whether exports can catch up or nah." He said sustained inflows from Gulf economies were containing pressure on the current account and supporting foreign exchange reserves, and that channel checks pointed to recovering economic activity in the region.
Country-wise data put Saudi Arabia at $3.67 billion and the United Arab Emirates at $3.05 billion for July to October, together about 45.5% of all inflows. Including Bahrain, Kuwait, Qatar and Oman, the Gulf contributed roughly $8.09 billion, or 54.8% of the total.
Saudi remittances grew 16.5% year on year and UAE inflows 13.5%. Bahrain rose 15.8%, Kuwait 13.9% and Qatar 13.6%. Inside the UAE the two main corridors moved in opposite directions: Dubai sent $2.51 billion, up 28%, while Abu Dhabi's $443.2 million was down 29.5%.
The United Kingdom was the largest source outside the Gulf at $2.23 billion, up 19.2%. The United States sent $1.26 billion, up 13.8%, and the European Union $1.87 billion, up 9.6%, including $565.2 million from Italy, $339.9 million from Spain and $282.5 million from Germany. Australia contributed $386.9 million, up 12.9%, and Canada $268.9 million, up 11.5%.
The rupee closed at Rs276.65 to the dollar in the interbank market, a gain of Re0.01. Gold fell Rs1,500 per tola to Rs430,836, with 10-gram bars down Rs1,286 at Rs369,372, according to the All-Pakistan Gems and Jewellers Sarafa Association.
How the reports differ
The Express Tribune carried the State Bank's country-by-country breakdown, comment from JS Global's Waqas Ghani and the closing rupee and gold rates. Investify's report gave the October inflow and the four-month total against the trade deficit, the same figures, without the corridor detail or the analyst comment.
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