17 January 2005 Monday 06 Zilhaj 1425 Bank credit greasing economy's wheels The private sector borrowings during July 1, 2004-January 1, 2005 at Rs285 billion have exceeded the overall fiscal year target of Rs200 billion. The target set for borrowings is not binding ... The meaning of economic development Economic development is both a policy objective and a means to achieving other policy goals, such as full employment, poverty alleviation, egalitarianism, and social progress. ... Pricing oil on the sliding dollar The currency markets remained gyratory during 2004, as euro has to place its firm position in the market. ... Derivatives: belated relief for business and industry The change from fixed to flexible interest rates and the often unpredictable volatility of Rupee-Dollar parity was creating problems for investors and borrowers because these developments were sometimes too rapid for the comfort of many of them. ... Asian identity in global oil market India wants an Asian oil market complete with all the facilities, including trading exchanges, to ensure steady supply of oil to the Asian economies and soften price volatility. ... Corporates' expanding social frontiers In the current era of consumerist society, the role of corporate giants has expanded beyond the frontier of 'only-for-profit'. ... Hoping for the best What do people living in pitiable conditions have to look forward to? Plenty, may be. They may not be hitched to the stars, according to a random survey, ordinary Pakistanis are relatively more hopeful than their prosperous-supposedly-enlightened countrymen. ... Wooing overseas Indians: Letter from Mumbai Chief ministers from about half a dozen states landed in India's financial and commercial capital last fortnight to woo hundreds of affluent overseas Indians attending the third Pravasi Bharatiya Divas (overseas Indians' day). ... Creating business outfits for the knowledge economy We are in a time of great change. While we can't control much of the world changing around us, we can determine how to respond. We can anticipate and embrace changes or resist them. Resisting change is like trying to push water upstream. ... Outsourcing services and their reach The outsourcing in both India and Pakistan is linked with IT outsourcing. There is a difference between outsourcing and IT outsourcing in that the later is a sub-category of the former that is a much broader term. ... How to make state units viable The proposed sale of the Karachi Shipyard and Engineering Works (KSEW) should serve as an eye-opener. Incorporated as a public limited company as way back as in 1957, the KESC is now up for sale. ... Public accountability of state assets Everywhere, government accounting as a discipline has always been seen as distinct and separate from commercial accounting. ... Challenges facing micro financing Pakistan is one of the 50 members participating in the celebration of the International Year of Micro Credit-2005 and is committed to use micro finance as a policy to target around 6.5 million poor households. ... A bumper cotton crop to boost economic growth Federal government officials were quoted in December 2003 as saying that measures for raising cotton output to 15 million bales by 2010 were being adopted. ... Unspecified standards for treating wastewater for irrigation The Karachi Water and Sewerage Board (KWSB) has reportedly invited applications for short listing of firms for the reuse of treated effluent of Mauripur and Mahmoodabad wastewater treatment plants. ... Farming needs new technology Globalization of agriculture will have far-reaching consequences for Pakistan and yet it is little studied, little realised and little known. ... Modernizing dairy farms Pakistan, through decades, has struggled to bring the livestock and dairy sector at par with other countries but without any major breakthrough. ... Stocks finish with extended gains on strong buying Despite a massive mid-week sell-off, the stocks last week managed to finish with extended gains on strong buying at the dips in leading shares. ... SBP injects Rs9.35bn in inter-bank market On January 13, the State Bank of Pakistan injected Rs9.35 billion into the inter-bank money market to help banks overcome the liquidity shortage created by the withdrawals ahead of Eid-ul-Azha. ... Rupee moves in narrow band The local currency remained range-bound versus the American currency in local market this week in the absence of directions. In inter-bank market the rupee opened the week on a positive note reversing its weekend's weakness versus the dollar. ...

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