Archive · 25 Aug 2026
Afghanistan’s New Trade Routes Leave Pakistan Border Economy Reeling
Afghanistan used to send a lot of goods through Pakistan.
Now, more of its trade is moving through Iran and Central Asia.
This has caused fewer shipping containers to pass through Pakistan.
The change is hurting businesses near Pakistan’s border, especially in Peshawar.
Pakistan introduced new border restrictions in October last year.
The report says those restrictions made the decline happen faster, but did not start it.
Iran supplied 31.3 percent of Afghanistan’s imports in FY25.
Trade moving through Pakistan to other countries also fell sharply.
This could reduce the money and business activity Pakistan earns from Afghan trade.
Afghanistan’s transit trade through Pakistan has sharply declined, affecting businesses and industries in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, especially Peshawar.
Container traffic fell from 102,886 containers worth $6.7 billion in FY23 to 42,959 in FY25 and 11,592 worth $367 million in FY26.
Pakistan’s border restrictions, introduced in October last year, accelerated a decline that had already begun, according to the report.
Afghanistan is increasingly redirecting imports through Iran and Central Asia, reducing Pakistan’s transit revenues and related commercial activity.
Afghan exports routed through Pakistan to third countries dropped from $454 million in FY25 to $7 million in FY26.
- Who
- Afghanistan, Pakistan, and businesses and industries in Pakistan’s Khyber Pakhtunkhwa region.
- What
- Afghanistan’s trade routes are shifting away from Pakistan, causing a sharp decline in Pakistani transit traffic and related commerce.
- When
- The reported decline spans FY23 through FY26; Pakistan introduced border restrictions in October last year.
- Where
- The impact is concentrated in Pakistan, especially Khyber Pakhtunkhwa and Peshawar, while Afghanistan is increasingly using routes through Iran and Central Asia.
- Why
- Afghanistan is redirecting trade toward Iran and Central Asia, while Pakistan’s border restrictions have accelerated the existing decline.
- Peak transit traffic
- 102,886 containers worth $6.7 billion in FY23.
- FY24 traffic
- 54,114 containers.
- FY25 traffic
- 42,959 containers.
- FY26 traffic
- 11,592 containers worth $367 million.
- Iran’s share of Afghan imports
- 31.3 percent in FY25.
- Iran-linked imports
- Direct imports from Iran and imports transiting through Iran represented 48.6 percent of Afghanistan’s total imports in FY25.
- Exports through Pakistan
- Afghan exports routed through Pakistan to third countries fell from $454 million in FY25 to $7 million in FY26.