ISLAMABAD, May 3: All economic indicators remained behind their respective targets in 2012-13, mainly because of poor performance of manufacturing, agriculture and services sectors, and partly owing to bad governance and inaction to resolve energy issue.
However, services sector emerged as the main contributor to overall paltry economic growth, largely because of rising defence spending and increase in salaries.
The GDP is expected to grow at 3.59pc by the end of June 2013 from 4.36pc growth in 2011-12.
This estimate of low GDP growth by the National Accounts Committee (NAC) of Pakistan Bureau of Statistics is drastically lower than what has been projected so far by the government and State Bank of Pakistan.
The government had projected that the GDP would grow at 4.3pc in 2012-13.
In 2007-08, the last year of military-led democratic government, GDP had grown at 4.99pc. In 2008-09, economy grew at 0.36pc; in 2009-10 at 2.58pc; in 2010-11 at 3.66pc and in 2011-12 at 4.36pc.
These figures were examined and estimated in the 93rd meeting of National Accounts Committee (NAC) held here on Thursday.
The provisional estimation of economic growth was made on the basis of data collected between July-March 2012-13.
At the beginning of the year, the government projected that the economy would grow at 4.3pc, but the finance ministry officials recently stated that the growth may suffer to 4pc owing to energy shortage and rising budget deficits.
The NAC, in its meeting, however, estimated that the projected paltry growth is mainly contributed by a growth in minor crops, livestock, small-scale manufacturing, slaughtering and the services sector in the year 2012-13.
Despite its critical importance to growth, agriculture sector posted a growth of 3.35pc this year as against projected target of 4.1pc.
Important crops recorded a growth of 2.31pc. However, cotton ginning recorded a negative growth of 2.93pc because of low cotton yield.
Almost all crops yield remained behind the target, projected for the current fiscal year, raising questions of structural problems in the agriculture sector.
The yield of wheat is projected at 24.2m tonnes this year as against the target of 26m tons.
But contrary to this, minor crops recorded a growth of 6.68pc after a negative growth in the past three successive years.
This could be a positive sign that arrival of minor crops in the market could help arrest food inflation.
Livestock posted a growth of 3.68pc in 2012-13. Fishery sector expanded 0.65pc and forestry 0.13pc, respectively.
Overall industrial sector posted a growth of 3.49pc in the fiscal year 2012-13 as against 2.66pc growth last year.
The target for this sector was projected at 4.1pc for the current fiscal year.
Industrial growth was mainly driven by 7.58pc in the mining and quarrying sector, 5.18pc in construction and 3.51pc in manufacturing.
Manufacturing, which is the second largest contributor to growth, recorded a growth of 3.51pc that grew from 2.13pc in the same sector last year. The target for manufacturing sector was projected at 4.4pc for current fiscal year.
In the manufacturing sector, large-scale manufacturing posted a growth of 2.83pc, small-scale manufacturing 8.23pc and slaughtering 3.54pc, respectively.
Supply of electricity, gas and water depicted a negative growth of 3.20pc, which recorded a growth of 2.73pc last year, indicating that the energy shortages hampered industrial growth in the year under review.
Services sector grew at 3.71pc in 2012-13 as against 5.34pc in 2011-12. The major contributors were the finance and insurance and general government services, which grew by 6.64pc and 5.60pc, respectively.
Wholesale and retail trade grew by 2.52pc, transport, storage and communications 3.44pc, housing services 3.99pc, and other private services 3.99pc.