Pakistan, Karachi

Overview

Pakistan, Karachi Karachi is the largest city, main seaport and the financial capital of Pakistan. Karachi is Pakistan's premier centre of banking, industry, and trade. Karachi is also home to Pakistan's largest corporations, including those that are involved in textiles, shipping, automotive industry, entertainment, the arts, fashion, advertising, publishing, software development and medical research.

Pakistan is in Southern Asia, bordering the Arabian Sea, between India on the east and Iran and Afghanistan on the west and China in the north. The climate is mostly hot and dry desert, temperate in the northwest, and arctic in the north.

The official language is Urdu. English is also widely spoken in business and government circles and by many staff at hotels, airports and railway stations. The main religion is Islam.

The economy of Pakistan is a semi-industrialized economy, which mainly encompasses textiles, chemicals, food processing, agriculture and other industries. The structure of the Pakistani economy has changed from a mainly agricultural base to a strong service base. Agriculture now only accounts for roughly 20% of the GDP, while the service sector accounts for 53% of the GDP.

Pakistan is a very conservative Islamic country and local Islamic sensibilities should be respected. Expatriate business dress is conservative and respectful of Muslim cultural sensitivities. Expatriate business dress is typically a suit for men, conservative clothing covering the arms and legs for women.

The security risk for expatriates in Pakistan is extremely high. Risks include terrorism (targeting expatriates), militant attacks against government and security force targets, fighting between tribal militias, crime, banditry, sporadic bomb attacks and rioting.

The currency of Pakistan is the Pakistan Rupee (PKR).

Medical facilities are generally below international standards. Dengue fever is common.

The population of Karachi is 24 Million (2016 est.), while the inflation rate is 5.02% (May 2017).

Cost Of Living

The cost of living for expatriates / professional migrants in Karachi as at 1 July 2017 is very low in comparison to other places in the world.

In Karachi, the cost of each basket, based on local prices, compared to the international average, is categorized follows (Exact cost of living percentages only available in personalised reports):
1) Alcohol (where available) & Tobacco: Very Low
2) Clothing: Low
3) Communication: Very Low
4) Education: Very Low
5) Furniture & Appliances: Very High
6) Groceries: Very Low
7) Healthcare: Low
8) Household Accommodation: Average
9) Miscellaneous: Low
10) Personal Care: Very Low
11) Recreation & Culture: Very Low
12) Restaurants Meals Out and Hotels: Very Low
13) Transport: Very Low

Karachi is for example -17.5% cheaper than Houston TX for groceries, 29.3% more expensive for household costs than Kuala Lumpur, and -26.1% cheaper for transport costs than Dubai.

Karachi is ranked as a extreme hardship location.

The hardship premium for Karachi for an expat from Perth, is for example 30%, i.e. host location (Karachi) premium of 40% minus home (Perth) location premium of 10%.

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The cost of living for expatriates / professional migrants in Karachi as at 1 July 2017 is very low in comparison to other places in the world.

Karachi is ranked as a extreme hardship location.