ISLAMABAD: The Ministry of Commerce and Pakistan Bureau of Statistics (PBS) have attributed a massive $11 billion discrepancy in import data to two entities under the Federal Board of Revenue (FBR); Pakistan Revenue Automation Limited (PRAL) and Pakistan Single Window (PSW).
In a briefing to the National Assembly Standing Committee on Commerce, officials clarified that the inconsistency stemmed from procedural and statistical misreporting — not financial mismanagement. They emphasized that the discrepancy has no bearing on Pakistan’s balance of payments, as the State Bank of Pakistan (SBP) records actual foreign exchange flows through verified banking channels.
“The difference arises from trade data used for statistical purposes, not real money movement,” a Commerce Ministry official explained. “The SBP's balance of payments remains unaffected.”
PBS representatives explained that the gap originated when trade data was being sourced from PRAL, which excluded figures related to the Export Finance Scheme (EFS). This omission caused underreporting in PRAL’s figures. Since shifting to data from PSW, they added, such discrepancies have not occurred.
“This clearly shows the issue lies within the two FBR entities,” observed the Committee Chairman, a point echoed by officials from both PBS and the Ministry.
Import data is primarily recorded through the WEBOC system using electronic goods declarations. PRAL processes this data into files using filters based on the type of goods declarations — including whether items are for home consumption or under facilitation schemes.
The Committee has directed PBS to work closely with PRAL and PSW to prevent future mismatches, underlining the need for integrated and consistent data practices across FBR’s digital platforms.
The issue highlights a significant challenge in Pakistan’s trade reporting systems, raising concerns over coordination between data-handling institutions.
