|
| February 25, 2008 | Monday | Safar 17, 1429 |
Encouraging mergers in textile industry
 Size matters. If it didn’t, State Bank Governor Dr Shamshad Akhtar wouldn’t push the textile industry into seeking consolidation of the entire chain through mergers and acquisitions in order to face effectively tough global trading environment....
|
|
Oil subsidy, pricing and profits
 Can the new elected government take the unpopular step to increase oil prices at the first available opportunity? Or will it allow the subsidy on oil prices to widen the budget...
|
Expensive campaign, voters’ choice
 The outcome of the most expensive general elections-2008 indicates that the campaign spending by candidates may have brought some more people out to vote but did not make any worthwhile impact on the choice of candidates....
|
|
Controversy over tobacco support price
 THE coming tobacco season will see yet another standoff between the growers and tobacco companies as the cultivators’ grievances mount....
|
|
|
||
|
Chemical-free cultivation
ORGANIC amendments in the soil suppress diseases, increase plant growth, help reduce the risk of environmental pollution and result in chemical-free production of crops. Therefore, implementation of this technology is the need of the hour....
|
|
Baby corn — a commercial vegetable
 BABY corn, the newly developed corn, is used as a vegetable in many Asian countries. It is used as an ingredient in the preparation of many food items....
|
|
||
Value-addition in fruit processing
 A GREAT diversity in soil and climatic conditions exists in the country, and this favours cultivation of a variety of fruits. The costal belts of Sindh and Balochistan are suitable for tropical fruits....
|
|
Foreign capital: a boon or bane?
 Foreign capital plays a crucial role in the current performance by impacting the vital sectors of balance of payments, fiscal position of federal government and national saving\investment....
|
|
|
||
|
Grameen in America
World food prices have been rising for long. They had more than doubled within the last two years and within a year the price index of the Economist of London has registered a rise of 54.1...
|
|
Subsidised CNG for transport sector
 On February 11, the government has launched a compressed natural gas (CNG) bus service in Islamabad-Rawalpindi as part of a comprehensive programme aimed at providing modern environment-friendly public transport service....
|
|
|
||
|
World economies
The Canadian economy continues to operate above its production capacity, despite some slowing in growth in the fourth quarter of 2007. Both total and core inflation have been lower than projected in the October, largely reflecting a price-level adjustment related to increased competitive pressures in the retail sector stemming from the level of the Canadian dollar....
|
|
India sidelines Brazil in Gulf sugar market
 GLOBAL sugar prices are likely to drop as Brazil and India, the world’s two largest producers, expand land under cane cultivation, jack up production, and also flood the international markets with the sweetener....
|
|
|
||
Productivity and competitiveness
 BUSINESS excellence has been identified as one of the pre-requisites for sustainable economic growth. It is by increasing productivity and quality through creativity and innovation that daunting global challenges can be overcome....
|
|
Sliding growth in industry, exports
 THE industrial growth has slowed down to an average 6.9 per cent in the first five months of the current fiscal against annual projected target of 10.5...
|
|
|
||
‘Boundaries of the capitalist system’
 The Confederation of British Industries (CBI), a powerful group of British business people has accepted that under the circumstances a period of temporary state ownership of Northern Rock mortgage bank “may well be the least bad outcome.”...
|
|
Taxing farm incomes
 THE failure to manage the much talked about fiscal consolidation — a key to ensuring macro-economic stability — has eventually forced the ministry of finance to take up the issue of...
|
|
|
||
Growing unease over free trade
 The perception that free trade and globalisation leave most people better off seems to be losing its appeal as, according to a poll, popular opinion in several countries is turning against...
|
|
Housing for low income group
With a regulatory regime for managing the Real Estate Investment Trusts (REIT) in place, the Securities and Exchange Commission of Pakistan (SECP) is now ready to receive applications for issuing licences to interested parties for setting up REITs....
|
|
|
||
Market at new high on hopes of smooth transfer of power
 THE Karachi Stock Exchange 100-share index last week crossed the barrier of 15,000 twice but failed to sustain it on weekend profit-selling amid brisk trading judiciously shared by the local institutional traders and the foreign investors....
|
|
Rupee up by 15 paisa against dollar
 Local currency this week managed to recover its post election days losses versus the dollar and euro. The local currency market remained closed on the opening day of the week due...
|
|
|
||
Scheduled banks’ assets lower by Rs5.9bn
 According to the Statement of Affairs of the State Bank of Pakistan, for the week ended February 9, 2008, both notes in circulation and those issued increased in the week....
|
|
Prices of essentials rise in post-election week
 THE post-election week on the Karachi wholesale commodity markets showed a virtual price flare-up on counters of some essential items as pent-up demand remained unsatisfied till the close of the week....
|
|
|
||
