Business confidence slips to 49.1 in September

Mettis Global reported that overall business confidence in Pakistan dropped by 0.5 points to 49.1 in September 2026. The reading comes from a State Bank of Pakistan survey carried out with the Institute of Business Administration, which gathered responses from 477 businesses between September 1 and 11. Confidence weakened in both industry and services, with the industry index at 48.5 and the services index at 49.3.

Within the survey, the current confidence gauge, which looks at the past six months, eased by 0.2 points to 46.5. Expectations for the coming six months weakened more sharply, slipping 0.8 points to 51.7. On the upside, the purchasing managers index climbed 2.7 points to 53.2, staying above the neutral level, with every sub-component recording gains.

Inflation expectations edged higher, with the aggregate reading rising to 7.7 from 6.9, and 69.8% of firms now expecting higher prices. Employment sentiment was mixed, as the current employment index dropped below neutral at 48.9 while the expected index improved to 53.1. Capacity utilisation in manufacturing eased to 64.8% from 65.6%.