Pakistan may be bankrupt, but Pakistanis give biggest ever opening to coffee giant Tim Hortons

Islamabad: Pakistan is on verge of bankruptcy as the country’s inflation rises to 45-year high. The people barely have money to pay for basic ration but a majority of youngsters used their lucre to treat themselves to expensive Tom Hortons’ coffee. Sounds bizarre, but a video from cash-strapped Pakistan will leave all surprised. Long queue was seen outside the renowned Canadian coffee shop over the weekend when Tom Hortons opened its first and flagship outlet in Phase 6, DHA Lahore. Penniless Pakistan sips record Tim Hortons’ coffee Pakistan’s economy is in dire state as its forex reserves fall below $3 billion (nine-year low) as of 9 February. The country’s currency – Pakistani rupee (PKR) - fell to a record low and fuel prices burning hole in pockets of local consumers. The South Asian nation has been struggling to fulfill the basic demands of its citizens. Despite all these, Pakistan has created a global record with Tim Hortons reporting the highest opening sales in the history ever since it opened in 1964. The Pakistani franchise of the Canadian coffee brand surpassed all of 5,352 outlets across the world and left behind everyone in terms of record-breaking sale. Sharing the video of a long queue at Tim Hortons on Twitter, a Pakistani journalist wrote: “On one hand poor are lining up for one bag of subsidised flour and riches are queue up for Tim Hortons coffee.”

Sharing a picture of long queue outside the coffee outlet a user wrote: “This is a nation where 8 million people are lying in open and dying in hunger due to flood. This is the nation where its PM begging infront of @IMFNews, which has reserve to pay just 2 weeks import. And this is the queue for coffee in Tim Hortons.

A Pakistani singer and actor Farhan Saeed also expressed his concern and tweeted, “There are 2 Pakistan(s), one that are in queue of utility stores for aata & ghee, & the other is at #TimHortons. It scares me, that there is nothing in the middle scares me.”

Many called it a two-nation theory

Here’s how others reacted:

According to reports, Tim Hortons’ second and third stores will open on the 18th and 25th of February, in Gulberg, Lahore, respectively. Pakistan economic crisis Pakistan economic crisis continues to spiral out of control. The world’s fifth most populous nation is seeming to be edging closer to a debt default. As per a report by Pkrevenue, the foreign exchange reserves of the State Bank of Pakistan (SBP) dropped to $2.917 billion. Simultaneously, Pakistan is facing hard times in securing a bailout package from the IMF. The country’s inflation is at a 48-year high. Foreign currency reserves cover less than a month of imports. The Consumer Price Index increased by 27.6 per cent in January 2023, while the Wholesale Price Index has increased to 28.5 per cent in the same period. Costs of essential commodities including wheat, onions, gas cylinders have touched a new high. The average cost of a 20kg wheat flour bag in January 2022 was Pakistani Rupee (PKR) 1,164.8 which shot up to PKR 1,736.5 in January 2023, a 50 per cent rise. Most filling stations in the Punjab region of Pakistan ran out of petrol . The oil companies of Pakistan are on the verge of ‘collapse’ due to economic crisis and currency’s devaluation. Read all the  Latest News ,  Trending News ,  Cricket News ,  Bollywood News , India News  and  Entertainment News  here. Follow us on  Facebook ,  Twitter  and  Instagram .