Pakistan textile exports in the first eight months of the current fiscal year of 2016/17 declined by 1.74 percent to $8.214 billion as improvement in exports from value-added sector arrested a major revenue setback during this period, as per official data.

According to Pakistan Bureau of Statistics (PBS), textile exports fetched $8.359 billion for the country during the corresponding period of the past fiscal year.

Knitwear exports remained almost flat at $1.561 billion in July-February 2016/17, while bedwear exports increased by 5.07 percent to $1.405 billion. Exports of readymade garments rose to 4.3 percent to $1.499 billion.

While Cotton cloth exports decreased 6.26 percent to $1.392 billion. Exports of raw cotton nearly halved in the period under review.

In February, textile exports slid 6.48 percent month-on-month and 2.53 percent year-on-year $995 million, the PBS data said.

On import side, Machinery imports accounted for 20 percent of the total imports of $33.494 billion during the period under review, standing at $7.811 billion, up 42.36 percent over the previous fiscal year.