Sovereign Debt Vulnerability
The last twelve years saw US$ based benchmark interest rate close to near zero as monetary expansion reduced the cost of capital...
The folly of relief
Nothing reflects the crisis of economic policymaking in Pakistan than the repeated pronouncements of providing “relief” to the masses by successive prime...
The remarkable life and tragic death of Airlift
Airlift’s highs were dizzying and its lows were tragic. But what are the lessons we can learn from it?
Have we peaked yet?
The State Bank of Pakistan (SBP) recently hiked interest rates by another 125 basis points, bringing the benchmark policy rate to a...
The evolving middle-east geopolitical chessboard
U.S. President Joe Biden this week travels to the Middle East where he will meet leaders of Israel and nine Arab States,...
Hot N Cold (The SBP’s Version)
The SBP has been moody lately. They’ve been changing their mind constantly, releasing confusing monetary policy statements, and have failed to communicate...
Winter is coming for the startups
“Winter is coming. We know what’s coming with it.” This line from the television show Game of Thrones, which is based on...
Exhausting the taxed
Pakistan has had a consistently low tax-GDP ratio for decades, staying below peer countries and barely touching 12 percent in a boom...
Paper cut
Commodity prices don’t increase in isolation, they mostly move in tandem. Just like the butterfly effect wherein a butterfly fluttering its wings...
A Freu-Darian slip of the tongue?
An Ishaq Dar shaped shadow hangs over Miftah Ismail and all of us
Failing to communicating
Clarity and consistency. These are two of the most important elements of crisis communications, especially during an economic crisis. Given the fact...
Slow rockets and fast feathers: Why exports fall fast but increase slowly after exchange rate changes
There’s no exportable surplus.
That is the typical response you get from private sector and policy makers alike when you ask why Pakistani...
A primer on refinery margins
To a casual observer, refining is a boring and largely commoditized business often exposed to volatility in commodity prices. During the last...
What imperils the mobile phone industry?
Another day another industry raising its voice about issues it is facing with regards to doing business in Pakistan. It is a...
Corporate lies
“A lie can run round the world before the truth has got its boots on.”- Terry Pratchett
Organizations have to constantly deal with...