Towards V-shaped recovery The finance ministry predicted that the economic recovery was expected to translate into more productive investment ex-penditures in the near term. PHOTO: FILE ISLAMABAD: Is the economy looking up? The data released by the Pakistan Bureau of Statistics (PBS) suggests an affirmative answer to the question. The economy seems to be moving towards a V-shaped recovery. Having registered pretty robust growth of 5.22% and 5.53% in FY17 and FY18 respectively, the economy decelerated to 2.08% in FY19 before contracting 0.47% in FY20. However, during the outgoing financial year (FY21), the economy is projected to register 3.94% growth. The 3.9% growth is by no means satisfactory, especially if seen in the context of 0.47% economic contraction during the preceding year (the problem of a low base). However, it does indicate that the economy is more resilient than predicted by most observers and analysts. At the same time, it would be premature to assert that the economy is out of the woods.