Pakistan’s Insecticide Imports Jump 53 Percent in Early FY2027 Trade Data
28 September 2026, Karachi: Pakistan’s insecticide imports surged 53.40 percent in value during the first two months of fiscal year 2027, according to official trade data released by the Pakistan Bureau of Statistics (PBS), sharply outpacing the broader agricultural and chemical import group, which grew a more modest 9.03 percent over the same period.
The data, covering July and August 2026 (the opening two months of Pakistan’s FY2027, which runs from July to June), show insecticide imports rose to 6,931 metric tonnes worth 35.469 million dollars, up from 4,013 metric tonnes worth 23.122 million dollars in the same period a year earlier. That is both a volume increase of roughly 73 percent and a value increase of 53.40 percent, meaning the average import price per tonne also rose, consistent with higher global technical-grade pesticide prices feeding through into finished formulation costs.
The insecticide surge stood out within a broader import basket that grew more slowly. The table below summarizes the PBS figures for the July-August 2026 period compared with the same period in 2025.
Category
Jul-Aug 2026 volume
Jul-Aug 2026 value
Jul-Aug 2025 value
Change (value)
Insecticides
6,931 tonnes
$35.469 million
$23.122 million
+53.40%
Fertilizer (manufactured)
128,337 tonnes
$30.021 million
$28.277 million
+8.13%
Plastic materials
388,876 tonnes
$570.422 million
$510.314 million
+11.00%
Medicinal products
9,274 tonnes
$49.286 million
~$65.14 million
-24.34%
Total agricultural and other chemicals group
n/a
$1.910 billion
$1.751 billion
+9.03%
Notably, fertilizer import volumes actually declined year on year, from 155,830 tonnes to 128,337 tonnes, even as their dollar value rose slightly, a divergence that points to higher unit fertilizer prices rather than higher demand volume. Insecticides, by contrast, rose in both volume and value, suggesting genuine demand growth rather than just price inflation.
PBS did not break down the insecticide figures by specific active ingredient, formulation type, or country of origin in the data reported, so it is not possible from this release alone to say whether the increase is concentrated in a particular chemical class such as neonicotinoids or pyrethroids, or is broad-based across the import basket. Pakistan sources the large majority of its formulated and technical-grade pesticides from China, and rising Chinese technical-grade prices for widely used insecticides during 2026 are a plausible contributing factor, though this specific data release does not confirm a direct causal link.
For global agribusiness readers, Pakistan is a significant secondary market for Chinese and Indian pesticide exporters, and swings in its import demand are a useful early indicator of on-the-ground pest pressure and crop protection spending in South Asia’s cotton, rice, sugarcane and wheat belts. A 53 percent jump in insecticide import value in just the opening two months of a fiscal year is a meaningful signal for regional distributors and formulators tracking demand outside the larger India and China markets, and it may also reflect currency and import-financing conditions specific to Pakistan, since insecticides are a heavily import-dependent input for the country’s agrochemical supply chain.
Global Agriculture is an independent international media platform covering agri-business, policy, technology, and sustainability. For editorial collaborations, thought leadership, and strategic communications, write to pr@global-agriculture.com
