With the release of auto sales data earlier last week, everyone got excited over the 27% month-on-month increase in sales figures for March 2021, while the year-on-year comparison is still not positive due to the lockdown in 2020. Everyone looks upon this as a delightful development for a sector that has different industries associated with its recovery.
Statistics for the nine-month period between July 2020 and March 2021 were even better with sales amounting to near 135,000, a 36% increase year-on-year. Now this figure is worth celebrating even more because, in the strictest sense, it takes away the months of inactivity due to the pandemic, and gives a closer picture of how much the auto sector has recovered. It compares the nine months during the time when interest rates were higher, economic activity was lower, and inflation was keeping citizens on their toes.
It looks as if this sector, touted as a backbone for Pakistan’s economy and that carries one of the highest weightage in the country’s large-scale manufacturing sector after textiles, food & beverages, and a few others are seen as a benchmark for the country’s path to recovery.
