INTRODUCTION

Karachi is the most populated city of Pakistan with an estimated population of 22 million. It is the financial and economic hub of the country and many businesses are headquartered there. The city has a labor supply of almost 5 million people and a literacy rate of 83% on average. Karachi contributes approximately 25% - 30% to the overall GDP of the country and handles 60% of the nation’s cargo making it one of South Asia’s largest and busiest deep-water seaports.

Road and transport infrastructure in Karachi has remained neglected mostly because of a lack of investment in improving the road structure and developing public transport systems. More recently the issue has come under scrutiny with the provincial government looking to develop mass transit projects to tackle the issue of congestion and pollution by making public transport more accessible.

MARKET OVERVIEW

Karachi’s office market can be divided into the new CBD and the old CBD; the former consisting of Clifton and Shahrah-e-Faisal while the latter consists of I.I. Chundrigar and Civil Lines. I. I. Chundrigar has been the city’s primary business and trading district. It is centrally located  close to the port and is considered to be the heart of the country’s financial services sector. However, poor city planning and lack of investment in infrastructure has caused severe traffic congestion during office hours leading many firms to relocate their offices to more accessible areas where the quality of developments, infrastructure and utilities is generally better.