47.5 per cent drop in foreign investment in Pakistan: Dawn

KARACHI: Net foreign investment in Pakistan fell 47.5 per cent to $2.22 billion in the first 11 months of the 2008/09 fiscal year compared with $4.23 billion in the same period last year, the State Bank of Pakistan said on Wednesday.

Foreign private investment fell 34.2 per cent to $2.76 billion in the July to May period, compared with $4.20 billion in the corresponding period last year, the State Bank of Pakistan said on its website. Out of total foreign investment, foreign direct investment was down 19.8 per cent to $3.32 billion, compared with $4.15 billion the previous year.

Rated deep in junk bond territory, Pakistan was saved from a balance of payments crisis and default by a $7.6 billion emergency loan package from the International Monetary Fund last November.

Its economy is also in virtual recession with gross domestic product growth for the 2008/09 fiscal year expected at 2 per cent, compared with 4.1 per cent last year.

There are also security concerns for investors as Pakistan battles a Taliban insurgency in its northwest.

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