Trade conundrum: who is at fault?
The July 2023 trade data indicates an improvement in the trade deficit – from negative 1.863 billion dollars to negative 1.607 billion dollars, a positive trend that was touted by…
Caretakers must ensure fiscal discipline
The last official document on the state of the economy prior to the end of the tenure of the eleven-party coalition government was uploaded on the Finance Division website on…
A mission-oriented industrial policy
‘While it is generally true that mainstream economists have responded to industrial policy with knee-jerk hostility since at least the 1970s, things have been changing fast, owing to new academic…
Biden’s China rhetoric
In an astonishing display of rhetorical hubris, US President Joe Biden recently unleashed a fusillade of criticism aimed squarely at China, dubbing it a “ticking time bomb” during a political…
Build back the blocks
We have probably all seen a child, perhaps in a tantrum or by accident, knock over a pile of blocks in our lifetime. Today, Pakistan resembles the chaos left behind…
Dwindling excess savings could scupper markets’ soft-landing hopes
Markets have high hopes for a soft landing for the economy, with bonds and equities rallying. Yet a sharp drawdown in the excess savings created by COVID-19 could be a…
Ciphers you can’t decipher
Even if you are totally bowled over by the endless reverberations of what had happened on May 9, you still need to have patience to bear with this rising tempo…
Euro’s stellar run in doubt as ECB muddies rate outlook
Euro bulls are set for an anxious summer ahead as doubts creep in over how far the ostensibly still-hawkish European Central Bank will go with interest rate rises. The euro…
Pakistan’s lifeline restored by IMF
Pakistan and IMF (International Monetary Fund) have reached a $3 billion Stand-By Arrangement (SBA) to help the country successfully avert default. However, the agreement comes with tough conditions! Many of…
Economic policy consensus: Anjum Ibrahim
There are two sides to a coin as they are to any argument – be it the result of informed debate and subsequent consensus or be it the outcome of…
