‘Economic concepts in irrigation’ The other view
This article is in response to an op-ed by Dr Zafar Altaf carried by Business Recorder on January 18. The contentions raised by Dr Altaf question the concept of multi-purpose…
German court’s ECB move leaves sovereignty unresolved
By referring a complaint against the European Central Bank's bond-buying policy to the European Court of Justice, Germany's constitutional court has side-stepped a crucial dispute over who has ultimate authority…
Other actions
Even in the best-case scenario of government-Taliban talks succeeding, would the Taliban fighter give up violence to go back to his old calling of madressah teacher, mosque imam, truck driver…
RIP Meekal Ahmed
Whether discussing the pitfalls of the 1990s’ foreign currency deposit scheme or the government’s growing recourse to printing money to pay its bills in present times, few have been more…
Brazil water project, long delayed, gets election year boost
In 2006, the then President Luiz Inacio Lula de Silva, a native of Brazil's historically drought-plagued north-east, pushed through an idea that long-suffering residents of the region had been hearing…
Why they fear an autonomous SBP
In an earlier article (‘The poor state of the State Bank’, February 1, 2014), I had criticised the PPP government for appointing commercial bankers as governors and deputy governors of…
Of popular mandates
In all likelihood, 2013 is the only year in Pakistan's 67-year history wherein the closing date for filing tax returns was extended from (the usual September 30) up to December…
Investors distinguish EM credit from FX risks
The emerging markets currencies sell-off has intensified this week but not every asset class is in a doom-and-gloom scenario. In the emerging bond markets at least, investors are taking a…
May the miracle survive
The composition of the negotiating teams by the government and the TTP and the TTP’s declared agenda require reflection. First, the composition: there is no woman member. As the exclusion…
Let’s talk
Many weak-hearted persons – like me – heaved a sigh of relief when last week Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif announced to give peace yet another chance. We should be thankful…
