On year-on-year basis, the industrial growth increased 9.72 percent during April 2017 as compared to the corresponding period of the last year.

However, on month-on-month basis, the industrial growth decreased 17.88 percent in April 2017 as compared to the growth of March 2017, according to the data of Pakistan Bureau of Statistics (PBS).

The highest growth of 4.40 percent was witnessed in the indices monitored by the ministry of industries; followed by 1.08 percent growth in the products monitored by the Provincial Bureaus of Statistics and 0.10 growth in the indices of the Oil Companies Advisory Committee (OCAC).

The major sectors that showed growth during July-March (2016- 17) included textile (0.73 percent), food, beverages and tobacco (11.60 percent), coke and petroleum products (0.97 percent), pharmaceuticals (9.01 percent), non-metallic mineral products (6.54 percent), automobiles (11.41 percent), iron and steel products (20.26 percent), fertilizers (0.21 percent), electronics (15.10 percent), paper and board (5.56 percent),engineering products (4.29 percent) and rubber products (0.36 percent).

The products that witnessed negative growth in production included chemicals production of which decreased by 2.33 percent while the output of leather products decreased by 17.76 percent and wood products by 94.64 percent.