About 64 per cent of foreign investments in treasury bills (T-bills) have been withdrawn and returned to their destinations, disappointing the government striving to attract dollar inflows. Market experts offer several reasons for this trend of outflows from domestic bonds but mostly believe that frequently declining returns on T-bills are due to falling policy interest rates and political unce
Soon after the launch of Telecom Policy 2015, I wrote an article in this newspaper titled "Roadmap to Realise Pakistan's Digital Potential", where I advocated that a high-level body was needed to oversee the adoption of information and communication technologies (ICT). I referenced similar high-level bodies in countries like Japan, South Korea, India, and even the United States (where vice pres
Not at all, if you look at the per capita consumption and spending patterns. Yes, if you consider the per capita GDP (gross domestic product). When evaluating a country's economy, income and poverty status, the per capita GDP is considered to be the most common indicator. For Pakistan, this indicator is certainly on the lower side and categorises us as a low-income country, and a nation struggl
The economic pie is divided among the income classes where high-net-worth individuals buy luxury goods and services while low and middle-income ones buy mass produced goods. Luxury goods are usually imported. If they are produced locally, they will involve a lot of imported content. In addition, they are produced through capital-intensive techniques. Hence, they consume precious foreign exchang
Pakistan faces numerous challenges in its tax system and revenue generation. These challenges include a narrow tax base, a complex tax structure, an undocumented economy, weak enforcement, political instability, and inconsistent policies. Each government attempts to address these issues according to its own priorities, but the focus remains primarily on increasing taxes from the existing taxpay