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| December 29, 2008 | Monday | Zilhaj 30, 1429 |
Economy: the worst nearing its end?
 Experts predict the next year to be difficult for the world economy. For Pakistan, it seems, the worst is nearing an end as 2008 closes. The year 2009 may be comparatively more productive for the businesses and the people....
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Industrialists for tax cut to spur growth
 As the economy slows down on the back of sluggish domestic and global demand, businessmen have advised the government to cut taxes on industrial raw materials and eliminate all levies on exports to boost economic growth....
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Trading risks in a volatile market
 Many established importers claim that they have been rendered almost bankrupt by the volatility of international commodity prices that dropped sharply between August and November 2008....
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Corporate farming and food security
 As investment-starved Pakistan puts its 1.1 million acres of agriculture land on the auction block next year, farmers wonder what it would mean for food security and social fabric of the country....
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RBOD: fears and expectations
 Many environmentalists, water experts and landowners view the construction of Right Bank Outfall Drain (RBOD) as a repeat of the Left Bank Outfall Drain (LBOD) which has proved disastrous for the...
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How to tax farm incomes
 Pakistan’s letter of intent to the IMF envisages a number of tax policy and administrative measures....
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Investing in soil fertility
Fertiliser use considered as a recurring cost of production must be paid for by the farmers through continuous increase in crop yields. It is apparent that not all farmers will be...
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Harnessing the wind power
 Renewable energy resources can be utilised without any discernable reduction in their future availability. They are classified as ‘cool’ and ‘hot’ resources, as the former produce energy without being burned, the later require combustion....
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Transit trade up, exports tumble
 The goods in transit facility extended to Afghanistan (GITA), a major source of supply to local Bara markets is being misused to smuggle industrial raw material and consumer goods....
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Towards macroeconomic stability
The current economic crisis had begun well before the ongoing global economic meltdown. Over the past eight years, official policies had essentially focused on the services sector at the cost of agriculture and manufacturing sectors....
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World economies: Thailand
The global economic downturn and domestic political uncertainty may continue to weigh on Thailand’s growth in 2009, with the World Bank predicting the country’s economy to expand by just two per cent next year -- the lowest rate since 1998....
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Dubai losing its luster
 TO the dismay of free market enthusiasts, West’s financial crisis has arrived on the shores of the Gulf and hit Dubai, the emerging global financial hub, with a bang bringing to an end its gold rush status....
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Insurance firms: ceiling on foreign capital up
 ONE of the most sensitive subjects in Indian politics is insurance sector reforms. Both the mainstream parties, the Congress and the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP), are convinced on the need for...
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Monetary policy and the central bank autonomy
The most serious failure of Musharraf regime was its inability to address the inherent structural weaknesses of the national economy. The economic mandarins who were ushered into power by him were...
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Managing a difficult year
 For Pakistan, the year 2009 will be difficult. What happens in 2009 will be determined by at least three things....
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Risk aversion and debt default
 According to the latest quarterly reports of the financial institutions, profitability didn’t suffer visibly until the third quarter of 2008. However, beginning with the fourth quarter, they forecast a downswing that could make 2009...
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Rich man’s think tank for poor nations
 International Growth Centre (IGC), a think tank set up by the UK government on the lines of 1930s ‘brain trust’ made up of professors from Columbia University which helped President Roosevelt...
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Trading volumes signal a return towards normalcy
 The benchmark KSE 100-share index last week demonstrated that it was close to its last resistance level around 6,000 points as the current spate of nervous selling seemed to have overrun...
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Dollar keeps rupee under pressure
 The local currency market witnessed mixed sentiments this week. The demand for dollar was strong amid slow trading activities. The rupee remained under pressure....
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Decline in bank credit
 According to the Statement of Affairs of the State Bank of Pakistan, for the week ended December 13, 2008, both notes in circulation and those issued increased in the week....
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Prices stay firm amid war fears
Quietly steady conditions prevailed on the Karachi wholesale commodity markets during the holiday-shortened week as prices of essential items mostly remained static around the previous levels amid modest physical activity....
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