Pakistan's textile and apparel exports have started the new fiscal year on an upward curve. According to Dawn, from July to August 2026, the country's textile and apparel exports reached $3.38 billion, up 5.55% from $3.2 billion in the same period last year.

Garments and cotton yarn lead gains

By segment, value-added links performed most prominently. In the first two months of fiscal year 2026/27, garment exports rose 13.59% year-on-year to $827 million; knitwear shipments reached $1.004 billion, up 4.79%; towels increased 6.74% to $191 million; and cotton yarn surged 34.8% to $161 million. In contrast, cotton fabric exports declined.

Over a longer horizon, Pakistan's textile exports were almost flat in the previous fiscal year. In fiscal year 2025/26, full-year exports were $17.93 billion, compared with $17.89 billion in the prior fiscal year. Among these, garment exports rose 3.87% to $4.29 billion, while cotton yarn exports increased 12.4% to $765 million.

Dual pressure from output and raw materials

While export figures are improving, the production side shows divergence. Preliminary data from the Pakistan Bureau of Statistics show that in fiscal year 2025/26, large-scale industrial production grew 4.98%, but total textile output fell 0.63%, while apparel output rose 5.49%. In July 2026 alone, large-scale industry as a whole grew 3.03% year-on-year, textile output edged down 0.03%, but apparel production surged 22.03%.

Raw material supply is another concern. As of September 15, cotton arrivals at ginning factories were 2.389 million bales, up 19.17% year-on-year, with Punjab up 24.73% and Sindh up 16.25%. However, domestic cotton production has shown a long-term decline overall—from a record 14.81 million bales in fiscal year 2011/12 to about 5.5 million bales recently, forcing the industry to rely increasingly on imported fiber.

Policy target set at $29.3 billion

The draft national policy for the textile and apparel industry for 2025–2030 proposes raising textile and apparel exports to $29.381 billion by fiscal year 2029/30, with key directions including higher value-added products, productivity, investment, sustainable development, and production diversification. The author argues that Pakistan needs to expand production of chemical fiber apparel and industrial textiles to reduce dependence on cotton and open broader global markets.

For the used clothing and textile recycling industry, Pakistan, as an important supplier of yarn and garments in South Asia, faces rising dependence on imported fiber due to the high growth of its cotton yarn exports and the continued weakening of cotton self-sufficiency, which will also indirectly affect the position of recycled fibers and second-hand textile raw materials in the country's industrial chain.

Source: Dawn: Pakistan's textile exports grow 5.55% · Originally published on 2026-09-27