This is apropos a Business Recorder news item "Trade in services posts over $1bn deficit in Jul-Oct" carried by the newspaper on Saturday. According to it, trade in services posted an over $1 billion deficit during the first four months of this fiscal year owing to lower exports.
Pakistan has not received a single penny on account of Coalition Support Fund (CSF) from the US during this fiscal year, while, during the last fiscal year till October, some $713 million CSF inflows arrived. The absence of CSF inflows has largely contributed to higher deficit. However, excluding CSF inflows, all other services trade exports are better than previous year.
According to State Bank of Pakistan (SBP), the country's services trade posted a $1.099 billion deficit during the Jul-Oct of FY17 compared to $714 million in the same period of FY16, showing an increase of 54 percent or $385 million.
That Pakistan's economic landscape is largely characterised by lower exports, little or no FDI and massive deficit in trade in service, a dangerous rise in external debt, etc, is a fact. The government, however, always paints a rosy picture of country's economy. The Ministry of Finance must stop misleading people.