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Corporate Window: Pioneering Women, Leading Change

Women have long been the chief financial officers of their homes. They have been the domestic engineers. They have been home economists. However, in the corporate sector, this is far from true. At 22 per cent, Pakistan exhibits one of the lowest rates of female labour force participation across South Asia. Factors such as inadequate education, limited access to safe transportation, prevailing s

Ensuring transparent oversight of cash flows

A Treasury Single Account (TSA) system reflects more robust internal controls over cash flows into and out of a government account. Among other things, it enables the government to exercise oversight of its cash flows and optimises domestic borrowing and related interest costs. The Constitution sets out a broad framework for managing public money from this perspective. Article 78 stipulates tha

A tailwind for convertible bonds

LAST month, artificial intelligence server maker Super Micro Computer achieved something not seen since 2021: It paid a zero per cent interest rate on a $1.7 billion capital raise. Its secret: it issued a bond that can convert to shares. The offering shows how the market for such convertible bonds is getting a second wind as investors adjust to the idea that the Federal Reserve will keep rates

Growth through devolution

With our country’s widely speculated hazy future under a six-party coalition federal government, more responsibility has devolved to the two relatively developed provinces ruled by majority parties to address current economic problems. Securing majorities in provincial assemblies, PML-N and PPP have once again assumed power in Punjab and Sindh. The two parties are also key allies in the federal

The gridlocks at the WTO

Fisheries, agriculture and World Trade Organisation (WTO) reforms were at the heart of intense negotiations among trade ministers from around the world who gathered in Abu Dhabi last week. Here are the main issues that were on the table during the ministerial conference known as MC13, which saw an extension of an e-commerce moratorium but no deals on agriculture and fisheries. Fisheries — th