PAKISTAN’S textile exports are no longer flailing; they are collapsing in plain sight. The inevitable fallout of years of reckless policies that have focused more on subsidising the industry’s inefficiencies than boosting its global competitiveness is already visible in its stagnating exports. The notice sent by Gul Ahmed Textile Mills to the stock exchange, elaborating on the factors leading to its decision to discontinue its apparel export segment, sums it up. Citing “persistent operational losses amid rising costs, policy changes and regional competition”, it blames a combination of internal and external factors for its decision to shut down its labour-intensive garment export segment. “Persistent challenges include intense regional competition, a stronger exchange rate, recent government policy changes, such as the increase in advance turnover tax, rising costs of nominated fabrics and elevated energy tariffs. Collectively, these factors have significantly undermined the segment’s cost structure and profitability, resulting in continued operational losses,” the company, a major exporter, said in its filing with the bourse. These reasons clearly show that internal factors have been at the root of the discontinuation of the company’s apparel export operations, with Pakistan falling out of the competition against rivals such as India, Bangladesh and Vietnam.

If that is not enough to jolt policymakers out of their slumber, the Federation of Pakistan Chambers of Commerce & Industry’s warning on the crippling inefficiencies in the logistics sector should. A policy brief on logistics, prepared by the country’s apex trade body, shows how an inefficient and costly logistics sector is suffocating exports. When moving goods within Pakistan eats up 15.6pc of GDP — nearly double the cost in advanced economies — our export shipments are handicapped before they even step onto the global playing field. No wonder Pakistan has fallen off the World Bank’s Logistics Performance Index altogether, while India, Vietnam and Bangladesh steadily climb.

Karachi Port and Port Qasim, the supposed gateways of trade, are working at a third of their capacity, with containers stuck twice as long than in neighbouring countries. This represents a major erosion of competitiveness. It is, therefore, no surprise that our exports are losing out to regional peers who have invested in efficient ports, rail networks, and integrated supply chains. Meanwhile, our policymakers take comfort in a different lifeline: remittances. Islamabad expects inflows from overseas Pakistanis to hit a record $43bn this year, cushioning the current account even as exports stumble. But to pin all hopes on remittances is delusional. Such inflows can plug deficits and mask structural failures for some time but they cannot build factories, fix ports or revive exports. A country that depends more on what its workers send home than what its industries ship out is signing away its economic future.

Published in Dawn, October 4th, 2025