Manufacturing plunges 41pc in April.

Byline: Fayaz Hussain

KARACHI -- The Large Scale Manufacturing (LSM) in April plunged 41.89 per cent year-on-year as almost all of the major manufacturing sectors posted negative growth, data released by the Pakistan Bureau of Statistics (PBS) showed on Thursday. The textile, top contributing sector to the overall big industry output, fell 64.20pc, followed by food, beverages and tobacco, down 23.24pc, coke and petroleum products 51.50pc, iron and steel products 88.96pc and non-metallic mineral products 17.36pc.

Of the 11 sectors under the Oil Companies Advisory Committee, 10 showed negative growth. The Ministry of Industries also reported across-the-board declines barring only the fertiliser sector, which witnessed 9.57pc growth during the month under review.

Data from the Bureau of Statistics showed production of essentials including soaps and detergents, ghee, cooking oil and tea witnessed slight growth during the period with the remaining sectors witnessing sharp contraction.

The government's directions to enforce a total lockdown during the month of April after the emergence of Covid-19 forced manufacturers to shut down production.

The closure of local as well as...