Sibte Hassan

• Pakistan announced on Saturday it had suspended border trade with Iran over security concerns
• Exporters want temporary suspension lifted, say disruption could also affect domestic rice prices

KARACHI: A leading association of Pakistani rice exporters warned on Sunday that shipping to Iran would be more difficult as tensions in the Middle East push up freight costs, a day after Islamabad temporarily suspended land trade with its neighboring country over security concerns.

Thousands of containers and trucks were seen stranded at the Taftan and Gabd-Rimdan land border crossings between Iran and Pakistan on Saturday, as commercial activity came to a halt. A Pakistani official told Arab News the closure was a temporary measure to improve border management to support counterterrorism efforts, without elaborating much.

Muhammad Raza, chairman of the Rice Exporters Association of Pakistan (REAP), said abrupt closures could create hardships for exporters who supplied rice to Iran. The neighboring country reported imports of about 354,000 tons of Pakistani rice worth $430.5 million in 2023, according to United Nations trade data available through the World Bank.

“To divert all to Bandar Abbas [port in Iran] would be very difficult as due to the [US-Iran] war the cost of freight is very high,” Raza told Arab News.

The war, which broke out in February, has pushed up freight costs and maritime insurance prices amid shipping disruptions in the Strait of Hormuz. Iran has effectively rendered the strait shut for most commercial vessels since the war broke out, driving up prices of petroleum products worldwide.

Pakistan exported about 5.82 million metric tons of rice worth $3.35 billion worldwide in the 2024-25 fiscal year, according to the Rice Exporters Association of Pakistan.

Karachi-based exporter Haroon Abdul Sattar Trading, which operates as “HAS Rice Pakistan,” said its regular land shipments to Iran involved trucks carrying 50 metric tons of rice.

“We regularly supply via land route through Taftan and Gabd border points,” a company official told Arab News, adding that HAS Rice Pakistan also ships rice by sea to the Bandar Abbas port.

The company was offering cost and freight terms for sea shipments to Bandar Abbas, meaning its prices included the rice and transport costs incurred to dispatch the product to the destination port, according to the official.

This was due to the “Middle East situation,” he added.

Raza said it was too early to determine the quantity or value of rice affected by the Pakistan-Iran land border trade disruption, adding that the abrupt suspension could affect rice prices in Pakistan.

REAP supports the government’s decision to prioritize national security, Raza said, warning that sudden closures could lead to “huge losses.”

“We understand that closure of this border may bring temporary hardships to our exporters and to importers in the trade,” he said.

Pakistan’s total exports to Iran amounted to $684 million in the 2023-24 fiscal year, according to the Federation of Pakistan Chambers of Commerce and Industry, which put bilateral trade at approximately $2.8 billion.

When asked for an update, Balochistan government spokesperson Shahid Rind referred Arab News to the federal interior ministry, saying border matters were decided by the center.

The interior ministry did not respond to Arab News’ queries.

The disruption comes days after Raza led a REAP delegation to meet Iranian Consul General Akbar Eissa Zadeh in Karachi on Oct. 14 to discuss expanding rice exports and bilateral trade.

The REAP chairman said both sides had emphasized continued trade engagement during the meeting, identifying barter as a key driver.

Despite the temporary disruption, Raza expressed confidence that Iran would remain an important market for Pakistani rice.

“We request the governments on both sides to address the issues at hand and let the trade continue,” he said.

Published Date: October 19, 2026