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Fiscal mess - straighten the priorities

Budget-making is in the process. This one is a tough budget to make. Covid-19 demands stimulus; but the fiscal deficit is already too high. The government is asking for no new taxes and demanding stimulus for industries and vulnerable. The government want

Updated 31 May, 2020 08:04am

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Coronavirus hopes and fears centre on 'immunity'

Could exposure to the coronaviruses that cause the common cold help protect against COVID-19? Is herd immunity closer than previously thought?

Published 31 May, 2020 12:04am

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Badly hit California economy aims to reverse virus 'free fall'

Millions unemployed, world-famous tourist attractions closed, movie sets shuttered and a huge deficit looming: California has been among the states hardest hit by the pandemic economically.

Published 31 May, 2020 12:04am

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PARTLY FACETIOUS: But the Buzz stays

"Yeh alam showk ka deekha na jai...translated it means this level of interest or zest is difficult to perceive..."

Published 30 May, 2020 12:06am

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The challenge of SOEs

The 190 State-Owned Enterprises (SOEs) comprising Public Sector Companies (PSCs), Development Finance Institutions (DFIs) and Authorities, employing a total of over 425,000 personnel, incur a colossal loss of around Rs 500 billion a year. In other words,

Published 30 May, 2020 12:06am

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A tale of two horses

Unfortunately, the exact quote, which by the way succinctly brings out the message, cannot be published - blame it on the censor board. Be that as it may, the more refined version comes out thusly: you cannot ride two horses with one behind.

Published 30 May, 2020 12:06am

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In the US, camera phones increasingly expose racism

From the death of a black man in Minneapolis to a racist incident in Central Park, camera phones are increasingly being used as a weapon against racism even when justice doesn't always follow.

Published 30 May, 2020 12:06am

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Budgets 2020 amid Covid-19 crisis - III: Fiscal challenges and 18th Amendment

The failure to tap the actual tax potential by the federal and provincial governments is the real issue and not the Constitution (Eighteenth Amendment) Act, 2010 [hereinafter "18th Amendment"] vis-à-vis the National Finance Commission (NFC) Award. Dismal

Updated 21 Jun, 2020 01:38pm

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Global policy post-Covid-19

There were already discussions gaining momentum since the Global Financial Crisis 2007/08 in many policy corners of economy and politics globally - but still remained far from reaching any meaningful threshold in terms of consequences on three main areas

Updated 13 Jun, 2020 09:49pm

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Alibaba extends its reach in China as coronavirus outbreak opens doors

Alibaba Group Holding Ltd is emerging as one of China's biggest corporate winners of the coronavirus crisis, gaining the opportunity to expand its businesses and solidify its status as a critical part of the country's socio-economic engine.

Published 29 May, 2020 12:05am

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Partly Facetious : Nawaz too relied on spiritual guidance

"What is Zardari sahib's legacy, do you reckon?"

Published 29 May, 2020 12:05am

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Tripartite social dialogue

According to ILO's definition, Social Dialogue means the practice of Tripartism between governments and the representative organizations of workers and employers to achieving solutions and to building up social cohesion and the rule of law through, among

Published 29 May, 2020 12:05am

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Partly Facetious : Wearing mask a sign of weakness?

"This is what happens when you ridicule those who are spiritual."

Published 28 May, 2020 12:03am

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Agricultural autarky via atoms

What is common between the disinfected mummy of Ramses II, and a well acclimatized shiny spike silver boll of cotton? Nothing much, apparently. But if one scraps the surface a little, one can find both benefitting from radiations in some way.

Published 28 May, 2020 12:03am

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Economic policy choices beyond...-II

Limitations of Monetary Policy

Published 28 May, 2020 12:03am

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Lockdown - A tale of other diseases

Lock down or die. Lockdown or economy. Lockdown or jobs. Lockdown or lives. These were the debates prevalent. World over and in Pakistan, from experts to individuals, the over whelming discussion was on the necessity of lockdown to defeat a virus that was

Published 28 May, 2020 12:03am

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In Spain, food aid queues grow as poverty outpaces 2008 crisis

Accepting food handouts for the first time has become reality for thousands in Spain where poverty has soared during the epidemic, echoing the 2008 crisis from which many have barely recovered.

Published 28 May, 2020 12:03am

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The GDP growth rate

The Pakistan Bureau of Statistics (PBS) has revealed the final estimate of the GDP growth rate for 2018-19 and the preliminary estimate of the GDP growth rate for 2019-20. This is contrary to the past practice whereby GDP estimates were included in the Pa

Published 27 May, 2020 12:06am

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Housing - a fundamental human right

Article 25 of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights recognizes the right to housing as part of the right to an adequate standard of living. Article 11(1) of the International Covenant on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights (ICESCR) also guarantees th

Published 27 May, 2020 12:06am

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China's mask boom takes fabric away for nappy makers

China's ramp-up of mask production to counter the coronavirus outbreak has claimed unlikely victims - nappies, wet wipes and sanitary towels that are made with the same raw materials.

Published 27 May, 2020 12:06am

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Sugar inquiry: Fix the illness not the symptoms

The sugar inquiry report did not focus on the structural problems creating the 'economic rents'. Rather the energies are expended on chasing the rentiers. And the media eyes are on personalities. The study dealt with the tactical issues - nothing on fixin

Published 24 May, 2020 12:01am

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The final step of your business's journey!

Running a business on any scale requires careful planning and the ability of its managers to capitalize on all opportunities presented, while also finding the best solutions to all the challenges that arise in the business landscape. Every economy in the

Published 24 May, 2020 12:01am

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In the absence of tourists, locals reclaim their cities

In Barcelona, Laia and her daughter stroll peacefully in Park Guell. At the same time, Mladen savours the silence of the marble alleys of Dubrovnik while Fabiana soaks up the calm of old Lisbon.

Published 24 May, 2020 12:01am

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US mulls 'nuclear option' as China threatens Hong Kong autonomy

The United States on Friday stepped up threats to strip Hong Kong of special trading privileges as it led Western nations in anger over China's brazen assault on the territory's autonomy.

Published 24 May, 2020 12:01am

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What's up?

WhatsApp is a pun on What's Up, in case you didn't get it yet - actually, that was a sudden but rational guess made whilst dreaming up the title for today's write up; now it is knowledge confirmed from WhatsApp web page. Cool!

Published 23 May, 2020 12:06am

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Will Covid-19 deal US malls a mortal blow?

As they gradually reopen, US shopping malls are requiring masks and implementing social distancing policies in hopes of convincing customers that they can shop safely in the coronavirus era.

Published 23 May, 2020 12:06am

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Pakistan's human capital conundrum

In 1986, the Journal of Political Economy (JPE) published a paper ('Increasing returns and long run growth') by a relatively unknown economist. The same person, Paul Romer, got another one published in 1990 ('Endogenous technical change'), which had manag

Published 23 May, 2020 12:06am

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Budgets 2020 amid Covid-19 crisis - II: Need for paradigm shift

In the present circumstances, in the forthcoming federal budget, the need for a fair and simple tax system, as elaborate in Towards Flat, Low-rate, Broad and Predictable Taxes [PRIME Institute, 2016] and referred to in PIDE Policy Viewpoint [16:2020] Doin

Published 22 May, 2020 12:03am

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A looming debt crisis

In his article in the New York Times on April 30, 2020, Prime Minister of Ethiopia and the 2019 Nobel Peace Prize winner Abiy Ahmed highlighted the fact that the temporary debt relief provided by G20 group of countries, however a welcome step, it was not

Published 22 May, 2020 12:03am

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Saudi Ramazan TV dramas invite scrutiny of Israel ties

Two Ramazan television dramas on a Saudi-controlled network have stirred controversy as they test public perceptions of quietly warming relations between the Gulf kingdom and Israel.

Published 22 May, 2020 12:03am

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Partly Facetious: Refined sugar!

"So will Shahbaz Sharif be arrested after Eid or won't he! Yes, sayeth GG."

Published 21 May, 2020 12:09am

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In the name of the poor

How easily our worldview mutates. How quickly our hierarchy of ambition gets rehashed and reset. All it takes is an invisible microbe.

Published 21 May, 2020 12:09am

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Digital transformation in the time of Covid-19

Digital and IT transformations are the only way forward. Before the on-going pandemic, technology adoption was the only way ahead and this will not change once the world emerges from this crisis.

Published 21 May, 2020 12:09am

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Europe's Franco-German 'motor' sputters back to life

President Emmanuel Macron and Chancellor Angela Merkel have jump-started the Franco-German "motor" at the heart of Europe by jointly pitching a hugely ambitious economic recovery plan, even if it faces a bumpy road ahead.

Published 21 May, 2020 12:09am

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Partly Facetious : No new taxes?

"Hafeez Sheikh says that there will be no new taxes in next year's budget."

Published 20 May, 2020 12:05am

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Food security in the age of Covid-19

There never was any lockdown in the country's agricultural sector. And from the way the NCC and NCOC have been carrying out, their respective efforts over the last two months at meeting the challenges of Covid-19, it appears that for lack of enough testin

Published 20 May, 2020 12:05am

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Economic policy choices beyond immediate crisis - I

The economic policy response to the coronavirus crisis by Pakistan has been significant. On the monetary policy side, the State Bank of Pakistan has taken aggressive action to loosen monetary conditions and provide desperately needed liquidity to business

Published 20 May, 2020 12:05am

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Coronavirus creates repair headache for oil and gas industry

The coronavirus pandemic has disrupted maintenance at oil and gas projects and refineries from Russia's Far East to the coast of Canada, storing up problems for an industry already reeling from slumping prices, analysts say.

Published 20 May, 2020 12:05am

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Partly Facetious : Shahzad Akbar's girth is expanding!

"The Khan needs to issue an urgent directive..."

Published 19 May, 2020 12:02am

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The forthcoming budget

The Federal and Provincial Budgets for 2020-21 are expected to be announced in the month of June, starting with the presentation of the Federal Budget on the 5th of June. These budgets come at a time when the economy has been badly hit by the COVID-19 and

Published 19 May, 2020 12:02am

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Hedging oil

.Oil prices have touched zero and became even negative recently. A debate has ensued in Pakistan that we should have bought cheaper oil. It is a different matter that around the same time, there was news of diesel shortages. Petroleum Division, probably,

Published 19 May, 2020 12:02am

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Dubai's historic gold souk shines again after lockdown

Evening dresses made of gold mesh, gilded sunglasses and glittering crowns are sparkling again from the windows of Dubai's historic gold souk which was shuttered during the coronavirus lockdown.

Published 19 May, 2020 12:02am

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Foreign exchange earnings

Pakistan's foreign exchange reserves on 30 April 2020 as per the State Bank of Pakistan (SBP) website were 12.329 billion dollars, a respectable amount given the ongoing global pandemic that has severely negatively impacted on our exports and is likely to

Published 18 May, 2020 12:06am

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Will they...?

A new phase, a new reality. The virus is there to stay for sometime. Sometime can be spent on being locked down or locked in, but, not for long. Countries are grappling with the reality of the virus being a way of life and that life without a virus will n

Published 18 May, 2020 12:06am

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Amazon hit from all sides as crisis highlights growing power

As Amazon becomes an increasingly important lifeline in the pandemic crisis, it is being hit with a wave of criticism from activists, politicians and others who question the tech giant's growing influence.

Published 18 May, 2020 12:06am

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The going gets tougher

As new data comes in, the bitter reality is sinking. The global economic slowdown is expected to be worse than what was earlier expected. There could be further downside risks to global economic growth outlook of minus 3 percent in 2020. No economist in t

Published 17 May, 2020 12:03am

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Tobacco industry - Pakistan's Giffen Paradox?

Many governments around the world keep a close eye on the use of tobacco - mostly used in cigarettes. Many countries increase taxes over time to reduce its consumption - the classic demand theory where increase in price of a commodity decreases its demand

Published 17 May, 2020 12:03am

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No beds, packed morgues: Mumbai hospitals near collapse

Packed morgues, bodies in wards, patients forced to share beds and medical workers run ragged: Mumbai's war against coronavirus has pushed the Indian city's hospitals to breaking point.

Published 17 May, 2020 12:03am

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Europe at odds as US, China fight over pandemic at UN

The clash between China and the United States over COVID-19 has caused a rift between European nations at the UN Security Council over a call for ceasefires in some conflict zones during the pandemic.

Published 17 May, 2020 12:03am

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Partly Facetious: You're required to support the good with the bad?

"I see that not as a rap over the knuckles but something more."

Published 16 May, 2020 12:07am

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Diamer-Bhasha dam

Finally, the commencement of much-awaited Bhasha dam has been formally announced. Prime Minister Imran Khan last Monday ordered immediate commencement of work on construction of Diamer-Bhasha dam, rightly describing water security as the foremost priority

Published 16 May, 2020 12:07am

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The value of life

If you party for four days, strict abstinence for the remaining three days will probably not get you off the hook. In substance, you have a lockdown or you don't - the virus is not going to take "off days" whilst its hosts go on a shopping spree, so this

Published 16 May, 2020 12:07am

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Pandemic stirs Wall Street's social conscience

Worker welfare is having a moment on Wall Street. The need to restart production lines and reopen offices idled by the coronavirus pandemic mean issues such as sick pay and working conditions are suddenly a top priority for the C-suite and, for some inves

Published 16 May, 2020 12:07am

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Abu Dhabi in talks with Dubai for support through state fund Mubadala

The governments of Abu Dhabi and Dubai are discussing ways to prop up Dubai's economy by linking up assets in the two emirates, with Abu Dhabi's state fund Mubadala likely to play a key role in any deal, three sources familiar with the matter said.

Published 16 May, 2020 12:07am

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Partly Facetious: What's a checkmate?

"Hip, hip, hooray The Khan."

Published 15 May, 2020 12:05am

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Budgets 2020 amid Covid-19 crisis-I: Revival, growth and revenues

"If we were to construe Entry 52 of the Legislative List keeping in view the above meanings of the expression "in lieu of", it becomes evident that the Legislature has the option instead of invoking Entry 47 for imposing taxes on income, it can impose the

Published 15 May, 2020 12:05am

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A post-Covid-19 world

Major wars and pandemics, are the sort of happenings that change the world as we know it before they have happened. The Black Death lead to massive deaths in the Middle Ages, also it broke the back of feudalism and created a working class. On the positive

Published 15 May, 2020 12:05am

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Why the United States might not open up to international travellers anytime soon

The US government largely shut down international travel to the United States in March with a series of rapid-fire moves, but restarting it will likely be a longer, more piecemeal process that could be complicated by rising tensions with China.

Published 15 May, 2020 12:05am

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Partly Facetious : Boris' bold decision

"Boris Johnson is recommending taking the bike to work, a proposal designed to contain the spread of the pandemic."

Published 14 May, 2020 12:04am

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The IPPs' curse

The recent "un-official" release of the Report by the Muhammad Ali Khan Committee on Power Sector has given the scandal hungry predators another target to feast upon. This Report fits right into a certain political and some TV channels' populist narrative

Published 14 May, 2020 12:04am

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Taking advantage of RMB to develop Pakistan's economy

As the Covid-19 is spreading quickly around the world, its effects on the world economy including that of Pakistan are profound, complex and far-reaching. In order to mitigate the adverse impacts and rescue the nosediving economic growth, almost all count

Published 14 May, 2020 12:04am

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Unlocking economic value

In a speech made to the House of Commons a little more than a century ago, Winston Churchill spoke of the significance of land, "It is quite true that land monopoly is not the only monopoly which exists, but it is by far the greatest of monopolies - it is

Published 14 May, 2020 12:04am

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Partly Facetious : Young Turks or Young Tigers?

"We are a nation of great orators but only when in opposition."

Published 13 May, 2020 12:07am

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Budgeting for a life with Covid-19

Two of the major burdens on the forthcoming federal budget are likely to be relatively lighter compared to what successive budgets had to bear under these heads over the last many decades. The first is the foreign debt, part of which, thanks to Covid-19,

Published 13 May, 2020 12:07am

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Impending cotton disaster

Availability of high-quality cotton is fundamental to the textile value chain which for Pakistan, is responsible for the influx of billions of dollars in the form of exports. In this respect, it earns the befitting title of "White Gold". Cotton makes mark

Published 13 May, 2020 12:07am

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Oceans play profound role in our lives

Memories of idyllic beaches and sonorous waves may seem far away while we remain at home. Yet, we need not look far to appreciate the enduring history of the ocean in Asia and the Pacific. For generations, the region has thrived on our seas. Our namesake

Published 13 May, 2020 12:07am

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Partly Facetious : Difference between micro and macro

"There is a major, major difference between macro and micro. Anyone with experience of the one cannot be assumed to be good at the other."