In August 2024, Pakistan’s monthly IT exports reached US$298 million, marking a 27% increase compared to the same period last year and a 4% increase compared to the previous month.
This figure surpassed the 12-month average of US$275 million. Topline Securities attributed the year-on-year growth in IT exports to the expansion of client base by IT export companies, particularly in the GCC region, as well as the State Bank of Pakistan’s decision to raise the permissible retention limit in Exporters’ Specialized Foreign Currency Accounts from 35% to 50%.
The stability of the Pakistani Rupee also encouraged IT exporters to repatriate a larger portion of their profits to Pakistan.
The month-on-month increase in IT exports was linked to the higher number of working days in August (21) compared to July (20), with export proceeds per day recorded at US$14.2 million for August and US$14.3 million for July.
Pakistani IT companies have been actively engaging with global clients. Recently, leading IT companies of Pakistan attended London Tech Week 2024, Collision Canada 2024, and Black Hat, USA. According to the Pakistan Software Houses Association (P@SHA) survey, 62 percent of IT companies are maintaining specialized foreign currency accounts.
A major development on July 24 was the State Bank of Pakistan (SBP) adding a new category of Equity Investment Abroad (EIA), specifically for export-oriented IT companies. Exporters can now acquire interest (shareholding) in entities abroad utilizing up to 50% of proceeds from specialized foreign currency accounts. This development will further boost the confidence of IT exporters to remit proceeds back to Pakistan.
Net IT Exports (Exports Imports) displayed a monthly number of US$ 257 million, increasing by 26 percent Year over Year (YoY) in August 2024. These net IT export numbers in August 2024 are also higher than the last 12-month average of US$ 241 million.
The brokerage house says the IT sector will continue its growth trajectory and momentum with a likely growth of 10-15 percent for FY25 to US$ 3.5-3.7 billion.
