Pakistan Loses Billions as Afghanistan Border Trade Shutdown Continues

DID Press: Pakistan has suffered nearly $1 billion in losses to its exporters due to the continued suspension of trade with Afghanistan over the past 10 months, according to Ziaul Haq Sarhadi, senior vice president of the Afghanistan-Pakistan Joint Chamber of Commerce and Industry.

Sarhadi said Pakistan’s annual exports to Afghanistan are estimated at around $1.5 billion, while Afghanistan’s exports to Pakistan stand at approximately $800 million. As a result of the restrictions, Afghan exporters have also incurred losses of about $533 million during the same period.

He added that the suspension of transit trade through Afghanistan has caused an additional $225 million loss to Pakistani exports heading toward Central Asian markets.

Sarhadi warned that the prolonged closure of trade routes between the two countries has directly and indirectly affected thousands of jobs. He said rising unemployment has created negative consequences for security and public order in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa and its merged districts.

Trade relations between Afghanistan and Pakistan have remained strained amid political and security disputes, with border crossings including Torkham facing prolonged disruptions.