20 September 2004 Monday 04 Shaban 1425 Inflation fouling up the economy The benefits of the highly publicised record low inflation in the country, reflecting the low global inflation, in the beginning of the current decade hardly ever reached the masses of Pakistan who where instead hit by high food and oil prices and their impact on other prices. ... The critical and difficult reforms Preparations are afoot now for the second generation of reforms, more critical and difficult to implement than those preceding them. In the first phase, few areas and few institutions have been targeted for reforms which were more easily managed. ... Values nearing the stock market model At a time when the world seems to be undergoing an unprecedented crisis of values, it is right that an organization such as the UNESCO, committed to instilling the values of peace in the minds of men and women, should pose the question of the future of values. ... Should interest rates be inflation-driven? In August 2004, CPI inflation-inflation measured by 473-item consumer price index- rose by 9.25 per cent year-on-year, or more than five times the rate of inflation in August 2003. ... Auditors' rotation: do disadvantages exceed benefits? The Task Force formed to ponder over the question of 'rotation of auditors' should have come up with its recommendations by May 31. The date has been extended to sometimes this week. ... US investment treaty: advantages and risks Pakistan is among dozens of countries with whom the United States is seeking to sign, or has already signed, a bilateral investment treaty (BIT) as part of a calculated strategy to bypass ... Trade with India Growing intra-region trade is today the most obvious feature of international trade. Trade within regional blocs constitutes nearly 50 per cent of the global trade, which is likely to increase further. ... Micro finance projects: prospects, challenges By By definition, microfinance refers to the provision of small-scale financial services to economically active people, often with multiple sources of income. Therefore, all targeted interventions would implicitly include if not explicitly depending upon it. ... Restructuring of textile industry Textile industry consists of numerous sub-sectors which are integrated into a chain right from the initial stage of cotton-seed and other basic raw materials to the final stage of finished goods. ... Pakistan's coal resources Coal plays an important role as a primary and an inexpensive source for power generation. In 2003, the USA produced 1,069 million short tons of coal and consumed during the same period 1,090 million short tons. ... Locust weed in riverine belt Calotropis (Calotrops procera) is a common weed in Katcho area (riverine belt) of District Khairpur. This weed plant, is locally known as the Akh. ... Resource conservation of two Punjabs Recently, Indian scientists of the Punjab Agricultural University, Ludhiana, visited Pakistan. During their visit to Lahore, Dr S. S. Dhillon made a presentation on the "Resource conservation technologies for improving/sustaining productivity of agriculture". ... Water scarcity to hit farm production While water has been on a scarcity streak for the past few years, the situation became critical during the last year; prevailing conditions inform of a semi-drought like state in the coming season in view of the predicted 60 percent shortage of irrigation water for the Rabi crop. ... Rural poverty alleviation Poverty alleviation has been the main slogan of all governments in Pakistan. A number of steps have been taken for its elimination but in vain. Poverty is rapidly encircling and entangling our rural segment into its strong spiny paws. ... Margin financing, CVT issues keep investors at bay The stocks received fresh battering last week as the Capital Value Tax and margin financing irritants continued to haunt the investors, making them think twice before committing further. ... Yield on Treasury bills raised from 2.62 to 3pc On September 15, the State Bank of Pakistan raised the average yield on the 6-month paper from 2.62 per cent to 3 per cent and managed to sell Rs1.1 billion worth of Treasury bills at this rate. ...

© The DAWN Group of Newspapers, 2004