Economists challenge 3.70pc GDP growth figure

Leading economists have challenged the government’s provisional GDP growth estimate of 3.70 percent for the outgoing fiscal year 2025-26, arguing that the figure is overstated and likely to be revised downward once the entire year’s data is available. Former finance minister Dr Hafeez Pasha told Business Recorder that the government’s provisional growth estimate ‘is exaggerated’ and that the economy’s actual expansion is below 3 percent. He acknowledged some positive developments in the economy, particularly the recovery in Large Scale Manufacturing (LSM), which has been supported mainly by robust growth in the automobile sector. However, he noted that the textile sector — one of Pakistan’s largest export earners — has remained almost stagnant.