World News | Pakistan: Economic uncertainty cuts Eid-related spending by 40%

Lahore [Pakistan]April 29 (ANI): Economic uncertainty in Pakistan has had a major impact on Eid-related spending, which fell by 40 percent, Pakistan Daily reported.

According to the Tribune, spending for Eid al-Fitr in 2023 is about PKR 432 billion, the lowest in a decade. This is significantly lower than the record high of PKR 1.1 trillion in 2018 and even below the PKR 480 billion spent in 2021 under Covid restrictions.

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However, some analysts believe that even if the economy does not plummet, consumer spending will be reduced as shoppers turned to some form of retail therapy last year after two years of Covid restrictions. However, according to The Express Tribune, foot traffic in shopping areas has decreased significantly as people don’t even want to go shopping for fear of overspending on impulse purchases.

However, online shopping partly made up for the drop in sales. Inflation has been cited as the biggest culprit and has been particularly criticized for rising prices of popular and previously affordable imports such as children’s clothing, which have risen even more than elsewhere due to the plunging rupee. According to The Express Tribune, due to problems in the local textile industry, there is not enough local supply to meet the demand for affordable clothing.

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The drop in demand for apparel is also emblematic of what is happening in other industries. After all, people who can’t afford new shirts are less likely to go out and upgrade their homes, vehicles, or even just their phones and household items.

The jewelry industry has been hit the hardest in this regard, with many shopkeepers noticing a significant increase in trade-in sales as shoppers try to balance their desire to buy new jewelry with declining spending power, resulting in fewer door-to-door visits.

One of the few positive findings is that charitable giving as a percentage of overall giving remains relatively high, with wealthy middle-class Pakistanis going out of their way to help those in need. Unfortunately, philanthropy alone is not enough to keep the country alive. According to The Express Tribune, people who work hard should be able to benefit from their labor rather than watch it quickly lose value. (Arnie)

(This is an unedited and auto-generated story from a Syndicated News feed, the content body may not have been modified or edited by LatestLY staff)