The struggles of the cotton crop continue as its challenges are unending. The desired production targets elude growers and industry. Last year seed cotton production in Sindh and Balochistan was hit mainly by flooding and torrential rains, leading to a 46 per cent loss in production in Sindh alone, according to some reports. This year’s harvest started early, especially in Sindh. Farmers were s
The revelation of the names of 628 beneficiaries of the Rs425 billion soft credit scheme may capture the attention of the public that has an unsatiable appetite for controversies, but the disclosure of the source of funds, its targets, the perceived cost and actualised benefits are probably also relevant and merit attention. It is equally important to know if the scheme was a State Bank of Paki
An interesting tussle is on within the expanded Organisation of Petroleum Exporting Countries, the OPEC+. To some, propping up the market prices is of utmost importance, while to others, increasing their market share is of optimal interest. And the two objectives are diametrically opposed to each other. While Saudi Arabia, in conjunction with Russia, is striving hard to put a floor beneath the
The total outstanding balances and undisbursed commitments of the non-sovereign transactions of Asian Development Bank (ADB) in Pakistan amounts to $242.48 million by the end of 2022. The latest fact sheet on Pakistan released by ADB showed total commitments in non-sovereign loans, equity investments and guarantees from ADB’s own funds in 2022 amounted to $1.1 billion for 37 transactions in eco
The government has formally acknowledged that imported liquefied natural gas (LNG) has become the most expensive fuel for power generation in the country, even surpassing furnace oil for whose replacement the multibillion-dollar LNG infrastructure was set up in the first place almost a decade ago. In a major decision setting the reference power-purchase tariff for each month of the current fisc