KARACHI: Gul Ahmed Textile Mills Limited (GATM), one of Pakistan’s largest textile manufacturers, has announced it will discontinue its export apparel segment after continued operational losses driven by rising costs, policy shifts, and regional competition.
In a notice to the Pakistan Stock Exchange (PSX) on Tuesday, the company said its Board of Directors had approved the closure during a meeting on September 29, following a strategic review of the segment’s performance and outlook.
The company noted that the export apparel unit, being highly labour-intensive, had faced sustained pressure on margins.
“Persistent challenges include intense regional competition, a stronger exchange rate, recent government policy changes such as higher advance turnover tax, rising costs of nominated fabrics, and elevated energy tariffs,” the statement read.
Gul Ahmed said the “strategic closure” is expected to improve the company’s financial health by cutting ongoing losses, lowering borrowing levels, and strengthening cash flow. It clarified that the decision only applies to its export apparel business, while operations in other core areas, including home textiles, spinning, and weaving, will continue.
The group, which began as a textile trader in the 1900s, set up Gul Ahmed Textile Mills in 1953 and converted it into a public limited company two years later. Today, GATM operates as a composite textile mill and also runs a retail network of more than 40 stores nationwide, offering fashion, clothing, and home accessories.
In April, the Pakistan Bureau of Statistics (PBS) said that Pakistan’s textile exports rose by 9.38 per cent in the first nine months of the current financial year, reaching $13.61 billion.
According to data released by the PBS, during the same period last year, textile exports stood at $12.44 billion.