A Pakistani street barber cuts a custome

A Pakistani street barber cuts a customer's hair in Lahore on February 5, 2010. Pakistan's battered economy is showing some signs of improvement with GDP growth expected to rise, a state bank report said mid-January, but it warned that the battle against militants remained costly. Inflation, the global recession, a crippling power shortage and a wave of Islamist violence have all taken their toll on Pakistan, with economic growth last fiscal year -- which ended June 30 -- the lowest since 1997-98. AFP PHOTO/BEHROUZ MEHRI (Photo credit should read BEHROUZ MEHRI/AFP via Getty Images)