Macro Talk

What is Pakistan’s economic story? What are its challenges? What should we focus on? Faiz Ahmed (Founder, Macro Pakistani) & Sennen Desouza (Co-founder, Investors Lounge) will help you understand “Why hasn’t Pakistan become the Asian Tiger it was destined to be?” in this first episode of BaKhabar.

⚫ About 83% to 85% of income in Pakistan is spent on private consumption.

⚫ Pakistanis are unable to save!

⚫ Why are Pakistanis unable to save and invest less? Learn more from Episode 02 of BaKhabar (a video series for initiating better conversations about Pakistan’s economy by Investors Lounge and Macro Pakistani).

‘Fiscal Deficit’– If you’ve heard about it but never quite understood it, Aapne Ghabrana nahi hai.

Episode 03 of #BaKhabar will help you make sense of the following:

⚫ Pakistan’s twin deficit crises

⚫ Budget landscape in Pakistan during the past 40 years

⚫ Problem with Pakistan’s tax system and low tax collection

Central to the discussion on the economic prospects of Pakistan is the relationship between the International Monetary Fund (IMF) and Pakistan! Episode 04 of BaKhabar will help you to understand:

⚫ In a crisis situation how does IMF fit into the picture?

⚫ Agreements between the IMF and Pakistan are not meant for growth, they are meant for macroeconomic stability.

⚫ How is Current Account being financed by borrowing from foreign sources?

Before commenting on whether or not Pakistan has a debt problem, we should understand what public debt in Pakistan looks like.

Episode 05 of BaKhabar will help you to understand:

⚫ Debt-to-GDP Ratio

⚫ Central Government Debt (CGD) in Pakistan

⚫ Debt servicing

⚫ Pakistan’s comparison with emerging markets when it comes to public debt

Overview of what inflation is, how its measured in Pakistan and what are some issues with measurement that Pakistan Bureau of Statistics need to take into account.

Taking the discussion on ‘inflation’ in previous episode further, Episode 07 will help you to understand:

⚫ causes of inflation in Pakistan

⚫ demand pull and cost push inflation in Pakistan

⚫ recommendations on how public management of prices can be improved

Overview of labor force and unemployment in Pakistan, with particular focus on female participation and youth unemployment issues in the country.

Highlights from the Federal Budget 2021-22 along with comparisons of previous years’ budgeted and actual revenue collection/expenditure. Ambitious target setting for revenues continues with fiscal deficits budgeted at 6.3%. Higher GDP growth is expected to bring in higher tax revenues and lower deficit. Expenditure to rise mainly for subsidies, development expenditure and higher transfer to provinces.

Overview of labor force and unemployment in Pakistan, with particular focus on female participation and youth unemployment issues in the country.

An overview of housing in Pakistan with a focus on the demand and supply side issues linked with the limited penetration of mortgage industry in the country.

An overview of Pakistan’s #export and #import mix, highlighting lack of diversification, an aversion to imports and important geopolitical relationships to consider.

Given Pakistan’s observable characteristics, World bank estimates that Pakistan’s potential exports are at USD 88.1 billion, about 4 times the actual current level.

In simple terms, there are two types of exchange rates: nominal and real. Nominal Exchange Rate (NER) is the rate at which an individual can trade the currency of one country for the currency of another country. Real Exchange Rate (RER) is the rate at which an individual can trade the goods and services of one country for those of another country.

Discussion on availability of granular economic data in Pakistan, with highlights from a UNDP study on estimates for provincial breakup of GDP and per capita income in the country.

An overview of the Human Development Index for Pakistan, with a province wise comparison on education, health and income inequality.

Financial Inclusion in Pakistan, this Episode with Karandaaz Pakistan will give an overview of the following:

• Current statistics on financial inclusion in Pakistan, comparison with other comparable regional countries.

• State of financial inclusion in Pakistan, and reasons behind why Pakistan continues to lag in this field.

• Comparing financial inclusion statistics in Pakistan, relative to around five years ago.

• Statistics on gender disparity in financial inclusion in Pakistan.

• Why is there a vast gender disparity in this field, what steps can be taken to bridge this divide?

How did Engro use a waste byproduct created in natural gas extraction to power a 217 MW power plant?