15.3pc Growth for Pakistan Financial Sector in 2003

Corporate sector received the largest chunk of 54 per cent of the total credit extended by the financial sector in 2003, followed by small and medium enterprises or SMEs that received 19 per cent.

According to a report titled Pakistan: Financial Sector Assessment 2003, agriculture and consumer finance sectors each received about 8 per cent of the banking system credit in the last year.

The report prepared by the State Bank was released to the press here on Friday. It can also be accessed at the SBP's website. An accompanying press release, quoting from the report, said that Pakistan's financial sector grew robustly during last year adding Rs.542.7 billion worth of assets which represent an increase of 15.3 per cent over the base of 2002 and now account for almost 85 per cent of the country's GDP.

Fixed investment during 2003 formed 26.2 per cent of total credit to the corporate sector. Rapid growth took place in 2003 both in SME financing and agriculture credit. SME financing registered a growth of 72 per cent and rose from Rs145 billion to Rs251 billion by June 2004…