The global recession that started in the fourth quarter of 2008 is expected to continue till mid-2010. It has affected, more or less, all the countries but the world has not witnessed anything as ruthless in terms of an economic crisis as was in the Great Depression of 1929.
Pakistan is a very economically diverse country, boasting industries of textiles, agriculture, sports goods, chemicals, food-processing, and fishing, to name a few. We, at one point, were the top exporters of fish and shrimps to Europe. In 2005, the World Bank baptised Pakistan as the top performer in the region.
The recent global economic recession endows Pakistan with great opportunity for attracting investment as the country can provide better chances of profit, compared to Western and other countries of the world. Due to financial recession, there is a negative trend in returns all over the world but is very positive in Pakistan. This trend has enabled Pakistan to come to light as a strong profit-provider in terms of returns, but it depends on the end to the war against terrorism.
Investors are in search of safe and profitable markets and are afraid to invest in countries dealing with financial recession. However, Pakistan was not directly hit by the recession, as other countries. No financial institution collapsed, unlike the banks in the US and Europe, and the government did not intervene to buy shares of crumbling institutions.
We did have a high percentage of write-offs in Pakistan, but nothing in contrast to the amounts written off in the US and Europe. The deteriorating law and order situation in the country is however creating impediments to attract investors. Pakistan will continue to face challenges as long as the world remains in recession. At this moment it depends on the government that how well it manages the economy to help Pakistan emerge out of this crisis.