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Crypto lessons from Sultana Daku

The last few weeks have been particularly volatile for crypto — even by its own standards. In a matter of days, the space has seen one of the biggest players, FTX, plunge into bankruptcy from a valuation of $32 billion. Not only that, more drama is coming to the limelight as the layers of the onion are peeled. Forget for a minute that the crypto exchange held just $900 million in liquid assets

The Catch-22 of growth and inflation

The State Bank of Pakistan (SBP) has raised its key policy rate by 100 basis points to 16 per cent to ensure that the current high rate of headline inflation (26.6pc) doesn’t become entrenched and “risks to financial stability are contained”. The central bank believes that “the short-term costs of bringing inflation down are lower than the long-term costs of allowing it to become entrenched.” I

Seeking new economic paths

By appointing most senior generals for the top military slots, Prime Minister Shehbaz’s government has put to rest unsettling speculations. The real test, however, is on the economic front. Much depends on handling the toxic mix of steep inflation and sagging growth. The latest data tracks inflation at 30.1 per cent year-on-year. The World Bank projected a GDP growth rate of 2.0pc in the curren

Development spending falls 45pc in July-October

Amid rising interest payments and disruptions caused by super floods, Pakistan’s development expenditure has contracted almost 45 per cent to less than Rs99 billion in the first four months (July-October) of the current fiscal year as the government’s overall expenditures increase. According to data released by the Ministry of Planning and Development, total expenditure in the first four months

Auto market’s fortunes turn as ‘own money’ vanishes on falling demand

Struggling to offload cars, Chinese and Korean firms offer attractive packages, discounts • No change for Toyota, Honda and Suzuki; Audi prices fall on expiry of SRO KARACHI: Increase in interest rates, curbs on auto financing and the prevailing political and economic uncertainty have proven to be more turbulent for Korean and Chinese auto assemblers than their Japanese counterparts and are of