PakistanEconomy—overview: Pakistan continues to suffer through a damaging foreign exchange crisis. The crisis stems from years of loose fiscal policies that exacerbated inflation and allowed the public debt money supply and current account deficit to explode. In April 1997 Prime Minister SHARIF introduced a stimulus package of tax cuts intended to boost failing industrial output and spur export growth. At that time the IMF endorsed the program paving the way for a $1.5 billion Enhanced Structural Adjustment Facility. Although the economy showed signs of improvement following the measures SHARIF has refused to implement the tough structural reforms necessary for sustained longer-term growth. As a consequence at yearend 1997 industrial production continued to flag foreign exchange reserves continued to teeter around $1 billion—only four weeks of imports—and borrowing to support the budget deficit already exceeded the amount allocated for the entire fiscal year. At the same time the government must cope with long-standing economic vulnerabilities—inadequate infrastructure low levels of literacy and increasing sectarian ethnic and tribal violence. GDP: purchasing power parity—$344 billion (1997 est.) GDP—real growth rate: 3.1% (1997 est.) GDP—per capita: purchasing power parity—$2 600 (1997 est.) GDP—composition by sector: agriculture: 24.2% industry: 26.4% services: 49.4% (1997) Inflation rate—consumer price index: 11.8% (FY96/97) Labor force: total: 37.8 million (1998) by occupation: agriculture 47% mining and manufacturing 17% services 17% other 19% note: extensive export of labor mostly to the Middle East and use of child labor Unemployment rate: NA% Budget: revenues: $9.6 billion expenditures: $13.6 billion including capital expenditures of $NA (FY96/97) Industries: textiles food processing beverages construction materials clothing paper products shrimp Industrial production growth rate: 3.3% (FY96/97 est.) Electricity—capacity: 13.169 million kW (1995) Electricity—production: 58.1 billion kWh (1997) Electricity—consumption per capita: 436 kWh (1997) Agriculture—products: cotton wheat rice sugarcane fruits vegetables; milk beef mutton eggs Exports: total value: $8.2 billion (FY96/97) commodities: cotton textiles clothing rice leather carpets partners: EU US Hong Kong Japan Imports: total value: $11.4 billion (FY96/97) commodities: petroleum petroleum products machinery transportation equipment vegetable oils animal fats chemicals partners: EU Japan US China Debt—external: $33 billion (1997 est.) Economic aid: recipient: $2.2 billion from all bilateral and multilateral sources (FY96/97) Currency: 1 Pakistani rupee (PRe) = 100 paisa Exchange rates: Pakistani rupees (PRs) per US$1—44.050 (January 1998) 41.112 (1997) 36.079 (1996) 31.643 (1995) 30.567 (1994) 28.1 (1993); note—annual average of official rate; parallel market rate is higher Fiscal year: 1 July—30 June
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