The trade deficit contracted by 42.25 per cent during the first quarter of the current fiscal year compared to the corresponding period of last year, the Pakistan Bureau of Statistics (PBS) reported Monday. The Trade deficit from July-September (2023-24) was recorded at $5.289 billion as against the deficit of $9.159 billion in July-September (2022-23), showing negative growth of 42.25 per cent. During the period under review, the exports decreased by 3.78 per cent to $6.899 billion compared to the exports of $7.170 billion during the corresponding period of last year, according to the latest PBS data. On the other hand, the imports narrowed by 25.36 per cent and were recorded at $12.188 billion compared to $16.329 billion last year. Meanwhile, on a year-on-year basis, the exports from the country increased by 1.15 per cent in September compared to the exports of the same month of last year. The exports during the month were recorded at $2.465 billion as against the exports of $2.437 billion in September 2022. On the other hand, the imports during September 2023 were recorded at $3.954 billion compared to the imports of $5.293 billion in September 2022, showing a decrease of 25.30 per cent, according to the data. On a month-on-month basis, the exports from the country increased by 4.18 per cent when compared to the exports of $2.366 billion during August 2023. The imports into the country went down by 12.68 per cent when compared to the imports of $4.528 billion in August 2023, PBS reported.