ISLAMABAD: The export of sugar rose by an astonishing 100 per cent in the first month of the current fiscal year despite soaring retail prices, showed data compiled by the Pakistan Bureau of Statistics on Monday.

As consumers grapple with high sweetener prices at home, sugar exports in July stood at 5,542 tonnes against no exports in the same month last year. The PDM government had allowed sugar exports in February reportedly at the behest of influential political families.

Despite the domestic market facing skyrocketing retail prices, sugar exports have continued to rise, leaving many to question the government’s decision.

Contrary to this, Pakistan imported 574 tonnes of sugar in July, showing an increase of over 20pc on a year-on-year basis.

In five months of FY23, Pakistan exported a significant quantity of 215,752 tonnes of sugar against zero foreign sales in the comparable period of the preceding year.

A total of 42,434 tonnes of sugar was exported alone in February, marking the beginning of this new trend. The following month, the volume tripled to 129,746 tonnes. The exports remained robust with a total of 40,716 tonnes in April. It started slowing down to 1,893 tonnes in May and then to 963 tonnes in June. In July the quantity of exports further decelerated to 5,542 tonnes.

Due to the excessive exports, the average retail price of sugar has skyrocketed to Rs160 per kg and there are expectations of further increases in the upcoming months.

Published in Dawn, August 22nd, 2023