ISLAMABAD: The Large Scale Manufacturing (LSM) sector posted growth of 1.85 percent during July-August 2026-27 on a year-on-year (YoY) basis, lower than the 3.03 percent LSM growth registered in July 2026, according to provisional data released here on Friday by the Pakistan Bureau of Statistics (PBS).
According to PBS data, the estimated Quantum Index of Manufacturing (QIM) during July-August 2026-27 was recorded at 116.14 points, compared with 114.03 points recorded during the same period of the previous year and 119.13 points registered in July this year.
The data revealed that LSM output on a month-on-month (MoM) basis in August 2026 posted growth of 0.67 percent compared with August 2025, while it registered negative growth of 4.96 percent compared with July 2026.
READ MORE: Jul LSM grows 3.03pc YoY, 9.51pc MoM
According to the PBS, LSM growth was mainly driven by the impressive performance of the automobile, cotton yarn, garments, cement and petroleum products sectors.
Automobiles remained a driver of QIM growth, as the sector registered remarkable growth of 32.45 percent during July-August and 11.66 percent on a monthly basis. Meanwhile, the cotton cloth industry posted negative growth of 0.03 percent during July-August, while the fertiliser industry’s growth declined by 7.55 percent and the iron and steel industry’s growth decreased by 11.48 percent.
According to PBS data, on a YoY basis, the food sector posted negative growth of 1.20 percent, beverages declined by 0.37 percent, the tobacco sector posted growth of 0.37 percent, textiles registered negative growth of 0.52 percent, wearing apparel posted growth of 2.85 percent, petroleum posted growth of 1.17 percent, chemical products declined by 0.89 percent, the pharmaceutical sector declined by 0.86 percent, the cement sector posted growth of 0.07 percent, iron and steel products declined by 0.48 percent, the electrical equipment industry posted growth of 0.13 percent, the machinery and equipment industry posted negative growth of 0.01 percent, the automobile industry posted growth of 1.20 percent, the other transport equipment industry posted growth of 0.27 percent, and the furniture industry registered an increase of 0.43 percent.
During August 2026, the other transport equipment industry posted growth of 37.04 percent, furniture 31.08 percent, the tobacco industry 22.35 percent, wearing apparel 16.69 percent, fabricated metal products 10.31 percent, electrical equipment 4.99 percent, computer, electronics and optical products 5.15 percent, non-metallic mineral products 0.20 percent, wood products 253.26 percent, rubber products 2.50 percent, coke and petroleum products 15.48 percent, and automobile products 32.45 percent.
Copyright Business Recorder, 2026
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