New Delhi, June 1 (IANS) As Karachi’s summer heat tightens its grip every June, Hina’s living room turns into a monthly budgeting war room. The old pedestal fan circulates hot air while her son wipes sweat from his forehead doing homework on the sofa, a report has said.
On the table lies an electricity bill folded several times over, while her husband silently scrolls through air-conditioner prices on shopping apps, comparing installment options they still are not sure they can afford, according to The Express Tribune report.
The family had promised themselves an AC last year. But school fees rose. Fuel prices climbed. Milk became more expensive. One unexpected expense after another quietly swallowed their savings, the report said.
Every month began with the same hopeful promise — “next month we’ll save properly” — only for the money to disappear into groceries, transport, rent and emergencies before the middle of the month arrived.
Hina’s story reflects a growing reality for Pakistan’s salaried middle class, where incomes are struggling to keep pace with inflation and everyday life increasingly depends on installments and Buy Now, Pay Later (BNPL) schemes.
For many households, the month now feels shorter than the calendar itself. Salaries arrive, bills are paid, and within days families begin calculating how to stretch whatever remains.
By the final week, survival often depends on borrowing from friends, delaying payments, or relying on credit from neighbourhood kiryana stores.
In this economic squeeze, paying upfront for major purchases has started to feel unrealistic. Instead, installment plans are quietly becoming part of daily life.
Air-conditioners, mobile phones, laptops, bikes, furniture, shoes and even Qurbani animals are now being divided into smaller monthly payments that feel easier to absorb than one large expense, the report said.
“If I try to save, I end up using the money,” said Areeb Javed, a university student in Karachi. “Installments force me to be disciplined.”
Like many students, Areeb has purchased his phone, sneakers and gaming accessories through monthly payment plans.
He says inflation makes traditional saving almost pointless because prices often rise before enough money can be set aside.
“If I save for months for a phone worth Rs80,000, the price may increase again by the time I can buy it,” he explained in the report by The Express Tribune.
Freelancers and workers with irregular incomes are facing similar pressures. Yousuf Ahmed, a web designer in Lahore, said delayed client payments make large upfront purchases feel risky.
For him, installment plans have become a financial buffer against uncertain cash flow, the report stated.
Economists said that the rise of BNPL services reflects more than changing shopping behaviour.
It highlights the shrinking financial stability of Pakistan’s urban middle class, where stagnant incomes and inflation are steadily eroding the ability to save, the report mentioned.
–IANS
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