Pakistan Records Growth in Imports From India Despite Formal Trade Suspension

Data published by the State Bank of Pakistan indicate that Pakistani imports from India are returning to levels recorded prior to armed hostilities between the neighbouring countries. Official trade between the two nations was suspended in the spring of 2025 following a series of escalations.

In April 2025, gunmen killed 26 people in Pahalgam in India-administered Kashmir. New Delhi blamed Pakistan for the attack, an allegation denied by Islamabad. Subsequently, India placed the Indus Waters Treaty in abeyance. Pakistan responded by closing its airspace to Indian carriers, shutting the Wagah border crossing, and suspending trade. The exchange led to a four-day conflict involving missile and drone strikes that concluded with a May 10 ceasefire.

Despite the formal suspension of trade, financial data reveal a gradual recovery in payments. According to the State Bank of Pakistan, the country imported goods valued at $61.7m from India between July and September, representing a 69 percent increase compared with the same period in the previous year. Monthly payments fell from $20m in April 2025 to $9.2m in June and $8.2m in July before rising back to $19.6m by September of that year.

Government trade figures show that organic chemicals and pharmaceutical products constituted 96.2 percent of total imports from India during the 2025-2026 fiscal year, an increase from 93 percent the prior year. Vaccines, blood products, and related items formed the largest category at $93.6m, up from $70.3m, with human vaccines specifically rising from $11.1m to $32.3m.

Monthly averages compiled from central bank records reflect the sustained recovery in transactions. Average monthly payments stood at $19.3m during the twelve months leading up to the conflict and registered at $19.1m across the 13 months following September 2025.