KARACHI, July 6: Pakistan’s textile sector imported synthetic fibre and yarn worth $145.9m during the last year to meet the increasing world demand for the blended fabrics and to earn more foreign exchange.

According to official sources the import figure reflects an increase of 25 per cent over the last year’s comparable figure of $116.558m.

In addition to synthetic fibre, the local textile industry has also imported about 1.2m bales of lint cotton from various countries after world prices dipped to new lows late last year and early this year.

The bulk of the imported stuff is exported at much higher rates mostly to Far Eastern countries after adding value to it. A part of it is consumed by the local end-product users.

Having in its fold over a dozen units including bigger ones such as Dewan Salman, Ibrahim Fibre, ICI Pakistan and Gatron Industries, Pakistan has a formidable synthetic industry, which after catering to the local consumption needs also exports to other countries.

“In the western markets, the demand for the blended fabrics rises as consumers like to wear them in winter, while in summer they like to wear clothes of pure cotton”, says a spinner.

He claims the use of synthetic fibre in cotton has been progressively rising during the last couple of years as leading local spinners do not want to loosen their grips on the almost secured consumer base in the western world.

“I don’t claim the share of synthetic fibre in cotton textiles has risen to 40 per cent”, he says “but the 30 per cent is the safe figure, which quiet higher viewed in the backdrop local production of cotton”.

However, the role of synthetic fibre is supplementary to the textile sector and not against its growth as it makes its products on the world markets more competitive and enabling to it higher forex earnings.

A couple of months back the local synthetic industry was the victim of falling world prices but it suited to the textile industry but successive upward price revisions to above Rs62 from the previous Rs52 per kilo have made now more viable.