Pakistan’s large-scale manufacturing shrinks 1.92 per cent

ISLAMABAD: Pakistan’s large-scale manufacturing (LSM) sector saw a decline of 1.92 per cent in September as compared to the same time last year, according to a report from the Pakistan Bureau of Statistics (PBS).

However, there was a slight improvement on a month-to-month basis with 0.46 per cent rise from August’s reading of 111.44 points.

Looking at the first quarter of the ongoing fiscal year, big industries observed 0.76 per cent contraction as compared to same period last year.

Key industries contributing to the decline include food (0.28 per cent), tobacco (0.46 per cent), textiles (0.55 per cent), garments (2.58 per cent), petroleum products (0.56 per cent), automobiles (0.45 per cent) and cement (-1.03 per cent).

The iron and steel sector (-0.64 per cent), electrical equipment (-0.81 per cent), machinery and equipment (-0.26 per cent) and furniture (-2.66 per cent) also played a role in this overall downturn.

The industrial sector makes up around 18 per cent of Pakistan’s total GDP. Since GDP data is only released quarterly, with a delay of about two months, the LSM figures act as a key indicator for policymakers to track the health of the industrial sector.

LSM is assessed monthly through the Quantum Index of Large Scale Manufacturing Industries (QIM) and serves as a reliable measure of industrial performance.

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