High commodity prices — what could have been done differently?
With Brent Crude prices at very low position of around $20 a barrel around the third week of April last year, and only rising rather slowly for the next few…
Commodity Review: hefty cotton stocks keeping pressure off prices
COTTON: The previously buoyed cotton prices have been steadily strengthening in the last two weeks courtesy of rising mill interest. The prices however are still at an attractive level,…
Commodity crunch
PAKISTAN is in the grip of serious food security concerns, especially regarding the availability and high prices of edible commodities. The devastating floods, that have washed away farm produce, are…
Getting prices right in Pakistan: Shock therapy, ‘dual-track’ price system, and input-output model
Lack of allocative and productive expenditure efficiency has led to under-utilization of revenue and aid, which in turn has not significantly contributed to lack of sustained, high economic growth, which…
Prices and inflation
It is quite clear that overall the monetary policy tool of raising policy rate to rein in inflation has not had any breakthrough for any significant period of time. In…
India’s rising home prices, rentals a new inflation threat
Rising home prices and rentals in large Indian cities could pose a new challenge to the country’s central bank in its fight against inflation, even though headline consumer price rises…
Oil prices and efficient buying
The government has increased petroleum prices by Rs30 per litre. The increase is uniform against all products. There was much talk about some subsidy mechanism for the poor (motorcycles and…
The fallacy of fixing prices
Our policymaking over the last few decades, if not more, has largely been devoid of any rational economic thought. Economic problems are solved not by thinking them through, but through…
Oil, gas prices: need for stabilisation fund
Oil prices go up and down. Now gas prices are also linked with oil prices. While lower oil prices go unnoticed and without affecting the economies of the developing countries…
Oil prices – what to do? – II
Classification of crude oil is based on viscosity (lightness or heavy) and sulfur level (sweet and sour/high, medium and low). Based on these two factors, there are six combinations or…
