Economic Survey 2025-26
Coverage of Economic Survey 2025-26 in the Nexus archive.
- Economic Survey 2025-26 paints rosy picture of job scenario, raises concerns on inequality among gig workers
The Economic Survey 2025-26 highlights an improved job scenario but notes that 40% of gig workers earn less than ₹15,000 monthly, with concerns over their limited credit access.
- Pakistan's young population could power its economy. The Economic Survey shows why it won't.
Pakistan's working-age population (56.9%) and youth cohort (26.6%) present demographic dividend potential, but the 2025-26 Economic Survey highlights insufficient investment in education, health, and labor force development. The demographic window has extended to 2055 due to slower fertility decline, but this delays rather than accelerates human capital investment.
- ECONOMIC SURVEY 2025-26: 2025 floods hit agriculture hardest with Rs430bn losses
The 2025 floods caused Rs822bn in losses, 1,039 deaths, and displaced 4 million people in Pakistan, with agriculture suffering the worst impact at Rs430bn. Punjab accounted for 76% of nationwide damages and 77% of casualties, while the government revised GDP growth downward to 3.5–3.9%.
- ECONOMIC SURVEY 2026-27: Poverty surges 7pc, pushing 27m people into financial distress
Pakistan's national poverty rate increased by 7% between 2018-19 and 2024-25, adding 27 million people to the impoverished population, now totaling 70 million. Rural poverty rose from 28.2% to 36.2%, while urban poverty increased from 11% to 17.4%. Provincial poverty rates varied, with Balochistan recording the highest at 47% in 2024-25. Factors like inflation, currency depreciation, IMF policies, floods, and the Middle East conflict contributed to the surge. Inequality, measured by the Gini coefficient, rose from 28.4 to 32.7 nationally.
- ECONOMIC SURVEY 2025-26: Digital economy grows as IT sector posts gains
Pakistan's IT and telecom sector expanded significantly in 2025-26, driven by a $509.6 million 5G spectrum auction, 64.2% broadband penetration, and Rs837bn telecom revenues. Local mobile handset production reached 161.6 million, and IT/telecom export remittances rose 19% to $3.38bn. New legislation and infrastructure projects, including Wi-Fi 7 adoption and fiber-optic expansion, aim to boost connectivity.
- Pakistan experiences back-to-back ‘warmest years’
Pakistan recorded its second-warmest year in 65 years in 2025, following 2024 as the hottest, with rising temperatures intensifying extreme floods and economic risks. Northern regions like Azad Jammu and Kashmir, Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, and Gilgit-Baltistan experienced record temperature anomalies, while global extreme heat has claimed over 200,000 lives in Europe since 2022.