Afghan transit trade surges 78% despite anti-smuggling measures

ISLAMABAD: (Rizwan Abbasi) Despite strict anti-smuggling measures taken by the Pakistani government, Afghan transit trade has seen a significant increase.

According to the official sources, in the first month of the new fiscal year, July 2025, Afghan transit trade recorded a huge increase of 78 percent on a monthly basis.

As per the data, the volume of Afghan transit trade in July 2025 exceeded $100 million, while in June 2025, this volume was only $56.3 million.

Similarly, in July 2024 last year, the total Afghan transit trade was recorded at $97.4 million, which has increased further this year.

According to sources, there was a major decline in Afghan transit trade during the last two fiscal years. The volume of Afghan transit trade in the fiscal year 2022-23 was $7.1 billion, which decreased to just $1.3 billion in the fiscal year 2024-25. During this period, Afghan transit trade imports decreased by $6.7 billion in two years.

The data shows that the volume of Afghan transit trade in the fiscal year 2023-24 was $2.89 billion, which was $4.21 billion less than the previous year. Moreover, it recorded a decrease of $1.86 billion in the fiscal year 2024-25.

According to sources, the Pakistani government has taken concrete and effective steps to stop smuggling under the guise of transit trade, but despite this, an extraordinary increase in Afghan transit trade has been seen at the beginning of this year.

Analysts said that the recent increase in Afghan transit trade indicates an improvement in trade activities between Pakistan and Afghanistan, however, along with this, concerns about smuggling also persist, which require further policy measures to prevent.