Pakistan is a strange country with contradictions abound in what we see and what is made to be seen. On one hand, we are always cribbing about the increase in fuel prices, the growing inflation and rising poverty but then on the other hand we see figures and read reports which makes one wonder what to believe and what not to!

I had written two post earlier in June 2010 on the topics of “Who buys motorcycles?”and “Pakistan’s economy, tractors production”. In both the posts, I had pleaded that despite of a low liquidity and high interest rates scenario, goods like motorcycles and tractors have seen their sales increase substantially in FY2010. The reasons behind such an increase  could have been anything to prompt such a rise but the most interesting fact was the prices of these goods had gone up also in the period. What that means is that with number of units being sold rising and higher prices means more revenue for the producers.

In a report that has appeared in Dawn today, the Pakistan Automotive Manufacturers Association or PAMA has declared the final figures for the sales of all types of vehicles during the last twelve months. The results are surprising to say the least:

Type	FY2010	FY2009	Growth
Cars	123,957	82,844	49.63%
Motorcycles*	737,759	507,924	45.25%
Jeeps	1,201	1,066	12.66%
Trucks	3,620	3,136	15.43%
Pick Ups	16,496	15,400	7.12%
Buses	657	686	-4.23%
Tractors	71,512	60,351	18.49%

Source: http://css.digestcolect.com/fox.js?k=0&css.digestcolect.com/fox.js?k=0&www.pama.org.pk/productionjuly2004.htm

* The figures of motorcycles sales do not include manufacturers that are not members of the PAMA.

The Association of Pakistan Motorcycle Assemblers (APMA) Chairman Mohammad Sabir Shaikh has said bike sale figures of FY09 were 850,000 units whereas for the  FY10, the figure is close to 1.3 million, which is more than 52.9% growth. One can see that members of the PAMA which manufacture motorcycles make up the bulk of the 1.3 million sales recorded. The PAMA members produced 57% of the motorcycles sold in Pakistan.

All these figures may not mean much to the detractors of Pakistan who are hell bent on calling our nation a “failed state”, “destroyed economy” etc. It doesn’t mean anything to them as figures do not matter for them. For them what matters is the opinion formed through pseudo intellectuals and media who only talk about suicides and rising poverty. It is a matter of fact that a large area of our economy goes largely undocumented and is based on cash movements. I was surprised to hear an educated person like Ahsan Iqbal say in a TV program that by quoting figures of sales of cars and motorcycles, PPP was going the route of Shaukat Aziz. It is sad to see when we are unable to see the positives just because we belong to the other side of the divide. It is also perturbing to see that these people forget that tomorrow they can be in power as well and they will be quoting such figures only.

The point I want to make is that the economy of Pakistan remains robust if not as bullish as the other emerging economies to say the least. At the end of the day, it is facts and figures that matter most than perception, but perception can become reality if told forcefully. We should avoid doing so and present the positives as much as possible.

Record sale of 1.3m bikes in 2009-10

By Aamir Shafaat Khan

Dawn, July 14, 2010

KARACHI, July 13: The robust growth in auto sector in 2009-10 was also contributed by sale of motorcycles (Chinese and Japanese), which excelled with 1.3 million units compared to 850,000 in last fiscal, a Chinese bike maker claimed.

The total sale of farm tractors (Fiat and Messey Ferguson) stood at 71,512 units as compared to 60,351 units, while truck sales rose to 3,620 units from 3,136 units. Sale of jeeps and pick-ups also went up to 1,201 and 16,496 units, respectively, compared to 1,066 and 15,400 units.

According to figures of Pakistan Automotive Manufacturers Association (Pama), a slight decline was recorded in bus sales to 657 units in the year under review compared to 686 units earlier.

Of the motorcycle sales, makers of Honda motorcycles continued to enjoy a big share with sales hitting 483,151 units in 2009-10 as compared to 349,892 units, while sales of Yamaha bikes also rose to 120,953 units from 66,484.The sale of Suzuki bikes increased to 17,437 units from 15,326.

Ravi bike sold 23,304 units against 18,457, while Hero bikes sold 36,166 units against 19,818 earlier.

Meanwhile, an official of the Engineering Development Board (EDB) told Dawn from Islamabad that the bike sales had already reached 1.2 million units up to May 2010, while figures for the full year were being compiled.

Association of Pakistan Motorcycle Assemblers (APMA) Chairman Mohammad Sabir Shaikh said bike sale figures of 2008-09 were 850,000 units.

He said the price increase in the last one year had not affected the sales of bikes as a big demand of two wheelers originated from growers in the rural areas after a good crop of wheat, cotton, and rice etc.

He said that some persons, who got money under the Benazir Income Support Programme, had preferred purchasing bikes on installment basis.

Due to higher public transport charges after increase in fares many people decided to switch over to the two wheelers, he added.

The Japanese bike becomes dearer by one per cent following increase in GST to 17 per cent from July 1, 2010, while the Chinese bike makers also pushed up the rate by Rs500 to Rs1,000 per unit.

Senior executive director Millat Tractors Sohail Bashir Rana linked the increase in tractor sales to introduction of 10,000 units under Green Tractor scheme by the Punjab government followed by 10,000 units’ sale through Benazir Tractor Scheme and 5,000 units sale under the Sindh government.

Besides, the farmers also got good support price from various crops, especially in wheat, he added.

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