The 5th International Textile and Leather Exhibition, “Texpo 2024,” is ongoing at the Karachi Expo Center, with participation from approximately 573 international buyers from 60 countries. Pakistani exporters hope this year’s business will double compared to the last exhibition, with a significant increase in export orders. At the Expo, foreign buyers actively purchase Pakistani textile products, with major buyers from Argentina, the Netherlands, Malaysia, the UK, Italy, Colombia, Brazil, Europe, and African nations attending the exhibition. In Hall 4, Germany’s well-known Messe Frankfurt also set up a stall, where their team provided exhibition-related information to local and international visitors.

Director of Qasmi Textile and Lakhani Textile and former Vice President of FPCCI, Hanif Lakhani, told the media that the Texpo exhibition has had a positive overall effect, with foreign visitors and African buyers visiting the stalls. “I congratulate TDAP for this successful effort, and this time, real buyers are showing up,” he said. Lakhani added that the Sri Lankan market needs attention as it is 90% dominated by India, but Pakistan should focus on it now.

Pakistani exporter and head of the Popular Group, Shahbaz Ali Malik, mentioned that Pakistani exporters have seen a 20-30% increase in orders due to the political situation in Bangladesh. He noted that China is also shifting its focus to high-tech instead of mid-level textile orders, leading to an influx of textile orders for Pakistani exporters.

PHMA chairman and prominent exporter Babar Khan stated that export volumes will indeed increase this year compared to last year. However, he suggested that if the government reduces energy prices to lower production costs, it could turn buyers from Bangladesh, China, and other countries into permanent customers, boosting exports and foreign exchange reserves. Despite high electricity and additional production costs, exporters emphasize the importance of maintaining these large orders.