Pakistan’s exports of advertising and market research services rose 19 per cent year-on-year to $30.7 million in the July–September 2026 quarter, according to State Bank of Pakistan data quoted by payments company Payoneer.
What happened?
The figures were shared at Payoneer Connect Lahore, an event for marketing agencies held in Lahore under the theme “The Export Era of Global Marketing”. More than 40 agencies attended to discuss winning overseas clients and growing with them, with speakers from the Pakistan Software Houses Association (P@SHA) and Google, alongside artificial intelligence practitioners.
Key details
- Advertising and market research exports reached $30.7 million in July–September 2026, up 19 per cent from $25.8 million in the same quarter a year earlier.
- The wider “other business services” category — which also covers public relations, consulting and technical services — brought in $620 million for the quarter, up 27 per cent year-on-year.
- Within that category, consulting and public relations exports alone grew 22 per cent to $81.2 million.
- Google’s Customer Solutions team demonstrated AI-based localisation as a way for agencies to reach buyers in other markets.
- P@SHA Vice Chairman Samad Saleem spoke about the policy and advocacy work under way to help digital services firms scale their exports, against the government’s goal of $15 billion in IT exports by 2030.
- The export figures come from Payoneer’s release citing State Bank data.
What it means for people in Pakistan
Pakistani marketing agencies are winning more work from foreign clients, showing that digital services exports go beyond freelancing and software alone. Growth in professional services exports brings in foreign exchange and creates skilled jobs at home — and with demand for AI-driven marketing growing, agencies that build those skills can keep expanding abroad.
