Pakistan’s textile exports fell in February, reflecting slower shipments from the country’s largest export sector, according to fresh data released by the Pakistan Bureau of Statistics.
The data showed that textile exports stood at $1.31bn in February 2026, down by 7 percent compared with $1.41bn recorded in the same month last year.
The decline was sharper on a monthly basis. Exports from the textile group dropped by 24.59 percent compared with $1.74bn in January 2026.
Despite the fall during the month, the sector’s overall performance during the current fiscal year has remained largely unchanged. In the first eight months of FY26, textile exports reached $12.22bn, slightly higher than $12.18bn recorded in the same period last year.
The textile sector continued to dominate Pakistan’s export basket. In February alone, textile products made up 57.57 percent of the country’s total exports.
Among textile items, readymade garments brought in $327.29m, while knitwear exports stood at $312.46m. Bed wear exports added another $220.89m to the total.
However, most of these categories also saw a drop in shipments compared with the previous year. Exports of readymade garments declined by 0.56 percent, knitwear fell by 14.51 percent, and bed wear dropped by 11.51 percent.
Overall, Pakistan’s total exports for February stood at $2.28bn, showing a fall of 8.53 percent compared with $2.49bn in February last year. On a monthly basis, exports were also lower by 25.45 percent.
Food exports decline sharply
The food group remained the second largest contributor to exports, though the sector recorded a sharp fall.
Food exports were valued at $405.89m in February, down by 27.54 percent from $560.14m in the same month last year. Compared with January 2026, exports from the group dropped by about 35 percent.
For the first eight months of FY26, food exports totalled $3.39bn. This was significantly lower than $5.17bn recorded in the same period last year.
Within the food group, rice remained the main source of export earnings. Rice exports reached $186.73m in February, showing an increase of 35.38 percent from the same month last year and nearly 49 percent compared with January.
Exports of oil seeds, nuts and kernels also increased, reaching $25.95m during the month.
In other sectors, exports of surgical goods and medical instruments fell by 6.06 percent to $33.94m, while leather exports edged down by 0.73 percent to $43.28m.
Sports goods exports showed some growth, rising by 6.59 percent from a year earlier to $33.25m, though they were lower than January’s level.
Exports of chemical and pharmaceutical products were recorded at $119.5m, showing a slight decline of just over 3 percent from the previous year.
Meanwhile, petroleum products made up a small share of the export basket. The country earned $44.6m from petroleum exports in February, which was more than double the level recorded a year earlier.
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