Karachi—The last time Pakistan’s annual
inflation was more than the 14 percent recorded
in March, the country’s official interest rates
were a lot higher than they are today. That
means the State Bank of Pakistan is left with
little choice but to raise interest rates, even
though it bumped its key discount rate up by 50
basis points in January, analysts and bankers
say.
Islamabad —Federal Minister for Environment Mr.
Hameed ullah Jan Afridi on Monday reviewed the
national energy conservation crash programme for
hundred days, in order to give relief to the
people against the energy crunch through
conservation.
Islamabad—Recently, Mr Akber Sheikh, Chairman
Media Committee of All Pakistan Textile Mills
Association (APTMA) made an earnest request to
Yousaf Raza Gillani, Prime Minister demanding
implementation of quality cottonseed supply to
farmers for ensuring a good crop season this
year.
Singapore—East Asia’s Islamic banking industry
needs more support from regulators if it is to
grow significantly, Moody’s Investors Service
said Monday. Apart from Malaysia, the growth of
Islamic banking has been “somewhat patchy” in
the region, the ratings agency said in a report.
Malaysia, a multi-racial country with a majority
Muslim population, shows how the Islamic banking
sector can benefit from regulatory action, said
Christine Kuo, author of the report.
THE surge in world food prices is accomplishing
what seven years of trade talks haven’t:
knocking down import barriers. The Doha round of
global trade negotiations has been stalled since
2001 because developing nations have refused to
lower import tariffs that protect their farmers
and rich countries won’t give up farm-price
supports. Now, import duties are being slashed
from Brazil to Burkina Faso in response to
prices that the World Bank says have risen 83
percent the past three years; subsidies in the
U.S. and Europe are falling. “Food prices have
done for import liberalization what Doha
wouldn’t have been able to achieve for a very
long time,” says Arvind Subramanian, a trade
expert at the Peterson Institute for
International Economics in Washington.
