Fall of the rupee
Why is the Pakistani currency depreciating so rapidly vis-à-vis foreign currencies? How can this trend be arrested? What is the future outlook for Pakistan’s currency? These questions must be addressed…
Southern Europeans express fear, admiration of Merkel
Across southern Europe, people hard hit by EU-imposed spending cuts viewed Angela Merkel's election victory in Germany with a sense of gloom. "It really scares me," said Marcos Rodriguez, 35,…
Bailout gravy train
It`s a dilemma for the ages. For over two decades now, Pakistan has received bailouts from the IMF. And this repeated recourse to foreign funds as a bailout has created…
A stitch in time saves nine: MMPS today
The State Bank of Pakistan is scheduled to announce today a Monetary Policy Statement (MPS). Most market analysts feel that the rate will remain unchanged at 9 percent. They premise…
‘Qarz burhao, mulk bigarho
In 1997 the slogan of Pakistan Muslim League (Nawaz) was 'Qarz Utaro, Mulk Sanwaro' [retire debt, adorn country], which is reversed in 2013 as all efforts are underway to increase…
So the PM sang
During the election campaign – and immediately after – Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif had repeatedly stated that proper management of the economy would be the top priority of his government.…
FBR: new chairman, old challenges
Of all the federal government institutions, Federal Board of Revenue (FBR) is, rightly or wrongly, considered as the most incompetent, inefficient and corrupt. Even if it is merely a perception…
The rupee under pressure
Pakistan and the IMF have reached a staff level agreement for a $5.3 billion bailout programme. Before this programme is presented to the executive board of the IMF for its…
Neoliberalism and the Taliban
On the face of things, there could not be a starker, more complete contrast between the Tehreek-i-Taliban Pakistan (TTP) and the pro-market, deregulation-heavy politics of the neoliberal state. In world…
Have we got our narrative wrong?: Tax to GDP ratio
Decades of fund involvement has changed the economic narrative permanently in Pakistan. Before IMF involvement we used to talk of growth and investment; now everyone talks only of tax/GDP ratio…
