Pakistani cement likely to get caught up in Torkham border suspension

Pakistan imports/exports in general and incoming/outgoing dispatches of containers/cargo from Pakistani ports to Afghanistan, as a transit trade facility in particular, have been suspended at the Pakistani-Afghan Torkham border (northwestern Pakistan) for the last week due to tension between Islamabad and Kabul. 

As a result, hundreds of trucks carrying essential goods have been stranded on both sides since the border was shut down after an exchange of fire in a dispute over an under-construction Afghan outpost on 6 September. 

The export of cement from northern companies in the Khyber Pakhtunkhwa province of Pakistan to Afghanistan has also been reportedly suspended due to blockage. Kabul is the main buyer of cement from the northern zones of Pakistan.  

Usama Rauf, the investment analyst at AKD Securities, comments that cement exports will be affected, especially if the issues persist.

According to Pakistani shipping circles, the closure of a key border crossing between Afghanistan and Pakistan at Torkham in northwestern Pakistan will impact importers, exporters and ports in the long term and draw extra cost.

Cement exports from the northern zones of Pakistan increased by 76.3 per cent to 286,009t during July-August 2023 (mostly sent to Kabul) compared with 162,210t exported during the same period last year.