The World Bank placed Pakistan seventh on the Overall Trade Restrictiveness Index. Pakistan's National Tariff Policy 2025-30 entered its second year of implementation recently.
In 2019, the country held the highest weighted average tariff among 70 nations with annual exports surpassing $20 billion. Tariffs in Pakistan rose by 11% during the ten-year period leading up to 2019.
More than 40% of the tariff lines in Pakistan carried duties higher than 15% according to the 2022 Trade Policy Review by the WTO. Trade-related taxes made up over 40% of the total tax revenue for Pakistan in 2023.
The global average for trade-related taxes stood at approximately 5% in 2023. Critics estimate that the Federal Board of Revenue could lose upwards of Rs2,000 billion every year in revenue from imports.
The manufacturing sector in Pakistan saw growth of more than 6.5% following the start of the reform process. Pakistan's balance-of-payments situation is positive for the first time in more than 20 years.
Exports grew by 10% during the first quarter of the current financial year.
