The National Economic Survey 2024-25will be presented tomorrow (Monday) as the government has failed to meet its economic growth target.
According to the survey, Pakistan’s provisional GDP growth rate for the current fiscal year stands at 2.68 percent, significantly below the target of 3.6 percent.
Media reprots indicate that during the current fiscal year, the economy expanded by USD 39.3 billion, reaching a total size of USD 410.96 billion, compared to USD 371.66 billion last year.
Domestically, the economy grew by PKR 9.6 trillion, with the total size reaching PKR 114.7 trillion, compared to PKR 105.1 trillion last year—an evident increase. Similarly, per capita annual income rose by USD 144, reaching USD 1,680.
The agriculture sector showed overall disappointing performance. The growth rate of major crops was -13.49 percent, against a target of -4.5 percent, indicating a huge decline in cotton ginning, which shrank by 19 percent. The overall agriculture sector growth was merely 0.56 percent, falling short of the 2 percent target.
However, moderate improvement was seen in livestock and other crops, with growth rates of 4.72 percent and 4.78 percent, respectively. The forestry and fisheries sectors also failed to meet their targets.
The industrial sector recorded a total growth of 4.77 percent, exceeding its target of 4.4 percent. Small industries and slaughtering showed growth of 8.81 percent and 6.34 percent, respectively, while large-scale manufacturing contracted by -1.53 percent. The electricity, gas, and water supply sector experienced an exceptional growth rate of 28.88 percent, far exceeding the target of 2.5 percent.
The construction sector also outperformed expectations with a growth rate of 6.61 percent.
The services sector registered an overall growth of 2.91 percent, falling short of its 4.1 percent target. Wholesale and retail trade grew by only 0.14 percent.
Moderate growth was recorded in information and communication, finance, real estate, education, health, and social work. The growth rate of public administration and social security was at 9.92 percent, almost three times the targeted 3.4 percent.
According to the Economic Survey, the economy has performed in an overall imbalanced and sectorally mixed manner, with some sectors having improved significantly while many critical ones have fallen short of their targets.
