INFLATION

Definitions:
A persistent and appreciable rise in the general level of prices is called inflation OR Inflation is the continued upward movement in the general level of prices OR Inflation is the process in which there is a continuous increase in the general price level. History: Inflation originally referred to the debasement of the currency. When gold was used as currency, gold coins could be collected by the government, melted down, mixed with other metals such as silver, copper or lead, and reissued at the same nominal value. By diluting the gold with other metals, the government could increase the total number of coins issued without also needing to increase the amount of gold used to make them. When the cost of each coin is lowered in this way, the government profits from an increase in seigniorage By the nineteenth century, economists categorized three separate factors that cause a rise or fall in the price of goods: a change in the value or resource costs of the good, a change in the price of money which then was usually a fluctuation in metallic content in the currency, and currency depreciation resulting from an increased supply of currency relative to the quantity of redeemable metal backing the currency. Following the proliferation of private bank note currency printed during the American Civil War, the term "inflation" started to appear as a direct reference to the currency depreciation that occurred as the quantity of redeemable bank notes outstripped the quantity of metal available for their redemption. The term inflation then referred to the devaluation of the currency, and not to a rise in the price of goods. Theory of Inflation: Inflation is the rise in the prices of goods and services in an economy over a period of time. When the general price level rises, each unit of the functional currency buys fewer goods and services; consequently, inflation is a decline in the real value of money a loss of purchasing power in the internal medium of exchange, which is also the monetary unit of account in an economy. Inflation is a key indicator of a country and provides important insight on the state of the economy and the sound macroeconomic policies that govern it. A stable inflation not only gives a nurturing environment for economic growth, but also uplifts the poor and fixed income citizens who are the most vulnerable in society Inflation means a sustained rise in prices. Inflation can be Creeping, walking or trotting, running, hyper or gallop, demand pull, cost push, mixed, markup or stagflation according to velocity and nature. Inflation is caused by some demand

side factors (Increase in nominal money supply, Increase in disposable income, Expansion of Credit, Deficit Financing Policy, Black money spending, Repayment of Public Debts, Expansion of the Private Sector, Increasing Public Expenditures) and some Supply side factors (Shortage of factors of production or inputs, Industrial Disputes, Natural Calamities, Artificial Scarcities, Increase in exports (excess exports), Global factors, Neglecting the production of consumer goods, Application of law of diminishing returns)

TYPES OF INFLATION:
There are six main types of inflation. The various types of inflation are briefed below. 1. Demand-pull Inflation 2. Cost-Push Inflation 3. Price Power Inflation 4. Sectoral Inflation 5. Fiscal Inflation 6. Hyper Inflation1. 1. Demand-pull inflation: This type of inflation occurs when total demand for goods and services in an economy exceeds the supply of the goods and services. When the supply is less, the prices of these goods and services would rise, leading to a situation called as demand-pull inflation. This type of inflation affects the market economy adversely during the wartime.
2. Cost-push Inflation:

As the name suggests, if there is increase in the cost of production of goods and services, there is likely to be a forceful increase in the prices of finished goods and services. For instance, a rise in the wages of laborers would raise the unit costs of production and this would lead to rise in prices for the related end product. This type of inflation may or may not occur in conjunction with demand-pull inflation.
3. Pricing Power Inflation:

Pricing power inflation is more often called as administered price inflation. This type of inflation occurs when the business houses and industries decide to increase the price of their respective goods and services to increase their profit margins. A point noteworthy is pricing power inflation does not occur at the time of financial crises and economic depression, or when there is a downturn in the economy.
This type of inflation is also called as oligopolistic inflation because oligopolies have the power of pricing their goods and services.

4. Sectoral Inflation:

This is the fourth major type of inflation. The sectoral inflation takes place when there is an increase in the price of the goods and services produced by a certain sector of industries. For instance, an increase in the cost of crude oil would directly affect all the other sectors, which are directly related to the oil industry. Thus, the ever-increasing price of fuel has become an important issue related to the economy all over the world. Take the example of aviation industry. When the price of oil increases, the ticket fares would also go up. This would lead to a widespread inflation throughout the economy, even though it had originated in one basic sector. If this situation occurs when there is a recession in the economy, there would be layoffs and it would adversely affect the work force and the economy in turn.
5. Fiscal Inflation:

Fiscal Inflation occurs when there is excess government spending. This occurs when there is a deficit budget. For instance, Fiscal inflation originated in the US in 1960s at the time President Lydon Baines Johnson. America is also facing fiscal type of inflation under the president ship of George W. Bush due to excess spending in the defense sector.
6. Hyper Inflation:

Hyperinflation is also known as runaway inflation or galloping inflation. This type of inflation occurs during or soon after a war. This can usually lead to the complete breakdown of a countrys monetary system. However, this type of inflation is short-lived. In 1923, in Germany, inflation rate touched approximately 322 percent per month with October being the month of highest inflation.

HOW TO MEASURE RATE OF INFLATION:]

Inflation is usually estimated by calculating the inflation rate of a price index, usually the Consumer Price Index. The Consumer Price Index measures prices of a selection of goods and services purchased by a "typical consumer".The inflation rate is the percentage rate of change of a price index over time.

Other widely used price indices for calculating price inflation include the following:

* Cost-of-living indices (COLI) are indices similar to the CPI which are often used to adjust fixed incomes and contractual incomes to maintain the real value of those incomes. * Producer price indices (PPIs) which measures average changes in prices received by domestic producers for their output. This differs from the CPI in that price subsidization, profits, and taxes may cause the amount received by the producer to differ from what the consumer paid. There is also typically a delay between an increase in the PPI and any eventual increase in the CPI. Producer price index measures the pressure being put on producers by the costs of their raw materials. This could be "passed on" to consumers, or it could be absorbed by profits, or offset by increasing productivity. In India and the United States, an earlier version of the PPI was called the Wholesale Price Index. * Commodity price indices, which measure the price of a selection of commodities. In the present commodity price indices are weighted by the relative importance of the components to the "all in" cost of an employee. * Core price indices: because food and oil prices can change quickly due to changes in supply and demand conditions in the food and oil markets, it can be difficult to detect the long run trend in price levels when those prices are included. Therefore most statistical agencies also report a measure of 'core inflation', which removes the most volatile components (such as food and oil) from a broad price index like the CPI. Because core inflation is less affected by short run supply and demand conditions in specific markets, central banks rely on it to better measure the inflationary impact of current monetary policy.

Other common measures of inflation are:

* GDP deflator is a measure of the price of all the goods and services included in Gross Domestic Product (GDP). The US Commerce Department publishes a deflator series for US GDP, defined as its nominal GDP measure divided by its real GDP measure. * Regional inflation The Bureau of Labor Statistics breaks down CPI-U

calculations down to different regions of the US. * Historical inflation before collecting consistent econometric data became standard for governments, and for the purpose of comparing absolute, rather than relative standards of living, various economists have calculated imputed inflation figures. Most inflation data before the early 20th century is imputed based on the known costs of goods, rather than compiled at the time. It is also used to adjust for the differences in real standard of living for the presence of technology. * Asset price inflation is an undue increase in the prices of real or financial assets, such as stock (equity) and real estate. While there is no widely-accepted index of this type, some central bankers have suggested that it would be better to aim at stabilizing a wider general price level inflation measure that includes some asset prices, instead of stabilizing CPI or core inflation only. The reason is that by raising interest rates when stock prices or real estate prices rise, and lowering them when these asset prices fall, central banks might be more successful in avoiding bubbles and crashes in asset prices Inflation rate is the percentage rate of change of a price index over time. To measure the inflation rate; we calculate the annual percentage change in the price level.

Inflation Rate= Current Year PricePrevious Year Price x 100 Previous Year Price

Example:

If this year price level is 126 and the last year price level was 120, then
Inflation rate= 126-120 x100 120 = 5%

So the 5% is inflation rate of the current year. This equation shows the connection between the inflation rate and the price level. For a given price by last year, the higher the price levels in the current year the higher the inflation rate. If the price level is rising, the inflation rate increases. Also the higher the new price level, lower is the value of money and the higher is the inflation rate.

INFLATION IN PAKISTAN:
Pakistan experienced high economic growth over six per cent during 2004-06. However, prices also started increasing at a rapid pace and the headline inflation remained above eight per cent during the last two years. The average Consumer Price Index (CPI) inflation was 9.3 per cent in 2004-2005 and around eight per cent in 2005-06.

Inflation In The Fiscal year 2008-09:

This year the increase in the price level has been extraordinary in Pakistan. The inflation rate measured through the Consumer Price Index (CPI) has climbed to 22.3 percent during (July-April) 2008-09 over the corresponding increase of 10.3 percent. Inflation accelerated at a rapid pace mainly because of rising food prices; a weaker rupee/dollar exchange rate; the gradual withdrawal of subsidies on gas, electricity and petroleum; the imposition of custom duty on the imports of various items; and an upward revision in the support price of wheat and sugarcane crops. The overall CPIbase inflation during the first ten months of the current fiscal year 2008-09 (July April) averaged at 22.4 percent, much higher than that of the last fiscal year 2007-08 (JulyApril) when inflation stood at 10.2 percent. The food group also increased sharply when compared to last year figures, measuring 26.6 percent for the first ten months of fiscal year 2008-09 as compared to 15 percent during the corresponding period last year. The steep rise in food inflation was largely due to an increase in the prices of a few essential items such as wheat, rice, edible oil, meat, pulses, tea, milk and fresh vegetables. Non-food inflation also showed a sharp increase of 19 percent during the same period as compared to 6.8 percent of last year. Most concerning, however, is the sharp increase in core inflation, measuring a substantial 17.8 percent during the first ten months of the current fiscal year as compared to 7.5 percent during the corresponding period last year (See Table 7.2) Based on current trends, it is expected that the average inflation for the year (2008-09) as measured by the CPI will be around 21 percent. These developments in the CPI are also reflected in other measures of inflation used in Pakistan, namely the Wholesale Price Index (WPI) as well as the Sensitive Price Index (SPI).

Item CPI(General ) Food Group Non-food Group Core inflation

(2006-2007) 7.8 10.4 6.0 5.9

(2007-08) 12.0 17.5 7.9 8.3

(July-April) (2007-08) 10.2 15.0 6.8 7.5 (2008-09) 22.4 26.6 19.0 17.8

Source: Federal Bureau Of Statistics Revenue (FBS) The food group has been the most significant contributor to the pick up in inflation during 2008-09 and the food price index is at its highest point since 1980, averaging 26.6 percent over the July April period. Within the food group, the inflation of perishable food items is estimated at 23.2 percent whereas non-perishable food items at 28.6 percent. Their contribution to this years overall CPI trend is registered at 5.3 percent and 45.1 percent respectively indicating a larger increase in prices of such items as pulses, sugar, wheat and tea. Given the speed at which food prices increased, high food inflation is likely to persist in the country over the next few months. The higher food prices have had a devastating effect on the Pakistani people as a major share of consumer spending is on food items. Hence, inflation has a direct impact on the poverty level as people suffer more from the high price of food than they gain from higher income. The escalation in food inflation began right from the start of the fiscal year, i.e. July 2008 and continued to persist up until December 2008 at an average of 31.3 percent for the fiscal year. However, thereafter it started to slowdown from 29.9 percent in January 2009 to 28.0 percent in March 2009 and further to 26.6 percent in April 2009, staying in tandem with the trend seen in international food and fuel prices.A shortfall in the production of some essential commodities in the country in relation to their demand has also driven up food prices. In fact, there are 13 food items (such as wheat and flour; sugar, poultry, mash pulse, meat, milk, tea, fresh vegetables etc) that account for almost 23 percent of the total weight in the Consumer Price Index (CPI). It is from these critical items that there has been a sharp pick up in food inflation in Pakistan. Food in general has become more expensive in Pakistan, resulting in a steep rise in the price of some basic commodities. For instance, the average price of sugar has risen above 41 percent, wheat prices by 17 percent, chicken prices by 24 percent, beef prices by 13 percent and onion prices by 64 percent since July 2008 over April 2009. With a 23 percent weight in CPI, the contribution of these few items to the overall CPI inflation is 18 percent. However, prices of certain other food items such as potatoes, rice, red chilies, edible oil and all the pulses, with the exception of mash pulse, have declined. Non-food price inflation rose to 19.0 percent for the July-April period as against 6.8 percent during the same period last year. Both the food and non-food inflation contributed to the overall CPI inflation but in different ways as various factors influenced the two CPI components separately. The increase in food inflation was influenced mainly from a shortfall in the supply of some essential consumer food items such as wheat, meat, sugar, milk and poultry whereas the non-food price inflation was mainly driven by the price of POL products and the resultant rise in transportation costs. In the international markets, oil prices dropped significantly from a peak of $145 /barrel in July 2008 to around $35 /barrel by December 2008 A similar impact was witnessed in the prices of food items with a reduction of 21 percent in the international price of wheat, 40 percent fall in the prices of rice, 38 percent reduction in palm oil prices and a 4 percent decrease in sugar prices. However, unfortunately for Pakistan, benefits of this reduction in world commodity prices could not be realized owing to a depreciation of the rupee. The impact of depreciation along with the imposition of addition duty on imports has been reflected in both the import costs of commodity and capital goods. Based on current tendencies,

the contribution of food and non-food inflation to the overall CPI is estimated at 48.0 percent and 50.7 percent respectively. When we further categorize inflation into different groups, the higher inflationary trends on an average-over average basis were observed in the transport group (30%) and fuel group (25%), showing the impact of rising energy prices. The cleaning and laundry group increased by 19 percent while the medicine group rose 12 percent but their weights in the CPI basket are small (5.9. percent and 2.1 percent respectively), hence their contribution to inflation was also minimal. On the other hand, the house rent index, which has a 23.4 percent weight in the total CPI, has shown a higher pick in inflation of 16.8 percent (See Table 7.3 and Fig-2). Other major factors that effected domestic prices, both in the recent past as well as those currently having an impact, include: Firstly, in order to reduce the pressure on the countrys fiscal position, the Government started phasing out subsidies on petroleum products. This led to an increase in the price of diesel, causing transportation costs to rise which in turn translated to higher prices of many other goods in the country. Secondly, the Government revised the support price of wheat in September 2008 by increasing it over 50 percent from Rs 625 /40 Kg to Rs 950 /40 Kg which in turn pushed up the retail prices of both wheat and wheat flour across the country. Thirdly, the gradual hike in power and gas tariffs during fiscal year 2008-09 also added to the domestic inflation rate. Electricity charges carry a significant weight of 4.4 percent in the overall CPI whereas natural gas has a weight of 2.1 percent, thus an increase in their prices would have a noteworthy impact on the headline inflation rate. Fourthly, the decision to increase the import duties on various items in tandem with the depreciation of the rupee vis--vis the dollar caused domestic prices to rise. This caused imports to be more costly than anticipated and hence served as another creeping cause of inflation. It is worth mentioning that appropriate policy response to tame inflation also includes monitoring the scarcity of essential items through timely imports, keeping a close vigilance on the stock and availability of essential items, the provision of incentives to the commodity producing sector, and keeping the money supply within the targeted range. Given the decelerating trend in food price inflation, the CPI headline inflation rate is likely to come down during the remaining months of the current fiscal year. Hence the current fiscal year is expected to end with average inflation rate of 21 percent. Commodity Group Weight (July-April) Percent (2007-08) CPI Food 1)Perishable 2)Non-perishable Non-Food 100 40.3 5.14 35.2 59.7 10.27 15.02 4.46 12.94 6.82 (2008-09) 22.35 26.61 23.24 28.61 19.01 Point Contribution (July-April) Percent (2007-08) 10.27 59.03 2.23 44.36 39.60 (200809) 22.35 48.03 5.34 45.06 50.75

Core Apparel, Textile House rent Energy Household Transport Recreation Education Cleaning Medicare

52.4 6.1 23.4 7.3 3.3 7.3 0.8 3.5 5.9 2.1

7.49 7.86 8.78 3.42 6.56 0.66 0.42 6.89 9.76 8.38

17.83 14.87 16.78 24.98 13.53 29.53 12.71 16.74 18.72 12.44

38.61 4.67 19.92 2.88 2.10 0.34 0.03 2.32 5.59 1.69

47.97 4.06 17.60 9.73 1.99 6.91 0.47 2.58 4.92 1.15

Historical Trend In Inflation: Historically viewed, Pakistan's experience in growth and inflation can be expressed in five distinct phases. Starting with the fifties there was low inflation with low growth, whereas in the sixties there was low inflation with high growth. The seventies entailed high inflation with low growth; the eighties saw moderate inflation with high growth; and in the nineties witnessed high inflation with moderate growth. Over the following nine years, i.e. 2000-01 to 2008-09, inflation saw a low of 3.1 percent in 2002-03 to a high of 22.3 percent during the current year, which is also the highest level in two decades. The overall annual inflation is expected to average 21 percent while GDP growth to remain at 2.0 percent for the year 2008-09. Table 1: Trend in GDP Growth Rate and Inflation Rate Period 1950-1960 1960-1970 1970-1980 1980-1990 1990-2000 2000-2009 GDP Growth rate 3.1 6.8 4.8 6.5 4.6 5.2 Inflation rate 2.1 3.2 12.3 7.8 9.7 8.4

14 12 10 8 6 4 2 0 1950-60 1960-70 1970-80 1980-90 1990-00 2001-09 GDP Growth Rate Inflation Rate

Is there any need to worry about inflation? When is inflation bad for the economy? A reasonable rate of inflation--around 3- 6 per centbut in our graph which represent the inflation rate and growth rate of Pakistan, after the period of 1960-70 there is no satisfactory rate of GDP and inflation up till 2009. When inflation crosses reasonable limits, it has negative effects. It reduces the value of money, resulting in uncertainty of the value of gains and losses of borrowers, lenders, and buyers and sellers. The increasing uncertainty discourages saving and investment. In case of Pakistan, annual inflation was above 11 per cent in the past 32 years. For Pakistan economy, inflation can be bad if it crosses the threshold of six per cent, and can be extremely harmful if it crosses the double digit level. A near History of Inflation in Pakistan with reference to CPI, SPI and WPI: [1] Consumer Price Index (CPI) is the main measure of price changes at the retail level. It measures changes in the cost of buying a representative fixed basket of goods and services and generally indicates inflation rate in the country. The Consumer price index was computed for the first time with 1948-49 as a base for industrial workers in the cities of Lahore, Karachi and Sialkot only. Continuous efforts have been made, since then, to make CPI more representatives by improving and expanding its scope and coverage in terms of items, category of employees, cities and markets. Accordingly, the CPI series were computed with 1959-60, 1969-70, 1975-76, 1980-81 and 1990-91 as base years. At present, the CPI is being computed with 2000-01 as base year. And according to the studies of CPI, the inflation rate during the fiscal year 2000-2001 was 4.41, during the fiscal year 2001-2002 it dropped down to 3.54, further dropped to 3.10 during the fiscal year 2002-2003, rose again to 4.57 during 2003-2004, increased drastically to 9.28 during 2004-2005 and then dropped to 7.92 during 2005-2006. And by the mid of October 2006, the CPI is reported to be 8.43. The Sensitive Price Indicator (SPI) is computed on weekly basis to assess the price movements of essential commodities at short intervals so as to review the price situation in the country. The SPI is being presented in the Economic Coordination

Committee of the Cabinet (ECC). Sensitive price indicator was originally computed with 1969-70 as base which was subsequently switched over to 1975-76, 1980-81 and 1990-91 as base year. Presently, the SPI is being computed with base 2000-2001. And Sensitive Price Indicator (SPI) shows the facts as; 4.84 in 2000-2001, 3.37 in 20012002, 3.58 in 2002-2003, 6.83 in 2003-2004, 11.55 in 2004-2005 and 7.02 in 20052006. Recently (By the mid of October 2006) the SPI is reported as 9.86. The Wholesale Price Index (WPI) is designed to measure the directional movements of prices for a set of selected items in the primary and wholesale markets. Items covered in the series are those which could be precisely defined and are offered in lots by producers/manufacturers. Prices used are generally those, which conform to the primary sellers realization at ex-mandi, ex-factory or at an organized Wholesale level. The WPI initially was computed with 1959-60 as base. Since then, continuous efforts have been made to make the WPI more representatives by improving and expending its scope and coverage in terms of commodities, quotations/markets, etc. Accordingly, WPI series were computed with 1969-70, 1975-76, 1980-81 and 1990-91 as base years. Presently, the WPI is being computed with 2000-01 as base. The Wholesale Price Index (WPI) tells the story as; 6.21 in 2000-2001, 2.08 in 2001-2002, 5.57 in 2002-2003, 7.91 in 2003-2004, 6.75 in 2004-2005 and 10.10 in 2005-2006.

CAUSES OF INFLATION IN PAKISTAN:

Now what are the causes of inflation in Pakistan? There are four main causes that can create inflation at high rate. 1) Demand-pull inflation. 2) Cost- push inflation. 3) Money supply 4) Artificially created

1) Demand -pull inflation:

It is generated when the aggregate demand increases than supply. Following are the causes of demand pull inflation in Pakistan. High monetary expansion: The supply of money expanding quickly every year but the supply of goods and services is not increasing according to that ratio. So in this condition there will be more demand due to excess of money and there is less supply so in this condition producer have to increase there prices to meet with the demand. Foreign aid: The volume of foreign aid is increasing with the passage of time. almost every year we receive million of dollars aid when this aid is used in the country, it

increase the demand because with that aid people will have more purchasing power so with the more purchasing power than there will 8me more demand this excessive demand tends the economy towards inflation. Consumptions Habits: In Pakistan most population usually feel proudness for using those items (goods and services) which are commonly used in advance countries. Population Explosion: The population is increasing at 1.9% in Pakistan. So this rate of increase in population will increase the demand for many commodities if the demand increases than you know there will be more inflation. Increase in wages: The rise in wages, salaries, and pension has increased the purchasing power of the people. Nationalization of industries: After the nationalization of industries in Pakistan the investor class is hesitating to do the investment due to fear of nationalization. So in this case there will be less industries who fulfills the demand of the goods and services so there is increase in price level which is the symptoms of inflation. Income from the Foreign: The Pakistanis who are in abroad .those families who are receiving in Pakistan there purchasing power increasing day by day .in other words their demand increases.

2) Cost -push inflation:

Sale tax:
Government of Pakistan has imposed sale tax on large number of goods like

oil, gas, electricity, telephone etc. It has also contributed the rate of inflation. Devaluation of rupee: It is an important factor in increasing the general level of price. Pakistan has devalued his currency many times in term of dollar. Devaluation has increase the cost of product and the price of the imported goods while the value of export has fallen. Rising prices of imported goods: Different commodities are imported whose prices are rising in the world market.

So these commodities are bringing inflation with them. Increase in indirect Taxation: The government of Pakistan is increasing the taxes on the goods every year. The direct taxes have also increased the rate of inflation.

3) Money supply:
It plays a large role in inflationary pressure as well. Monetarist economists believe that if the Federal Reserve does not control the money supply adequately, it may actually grow at a rate faster than that of the potential output in the economy, or real GDP. The belief is that this will drive up prices and hence, inflation. Low interest rates correspond with high levels of money supply and allow for more investment in big business and new ideas which eventually leads to unsustainable levels of inflation as cheap money is available. The credit crisis of 2007 is a very good example of this at work.

4) Artificial created:
Inflation can artificially be created through a circular increase in wage earners demands and then the subsequent increase in producer costs which will drive up the prices of their goods and services. This will then translate back into higher prices for the wage earners or consumers. As demands go higher from each side, inflation will continue to rise.

MEASURES PAKISTAN:

TO

REMOVE

INFLATION

IN

Now the question is how we can overcome to the inflation? What measures should be adopted to remove the inflation?

The inflation was well under control from the fiscal year 2000-2004. However it shoots up to 9.3% in the year 2005 mainly due to the rise in the support price of wheat and the surge in the international price of oil. it has been bought down to 7.9% in 2006-2007.However the food inflation was 10.2% for the fiscal year 20062007.The Government of Pakistan being well aware of the adverse effects of inflation, is taking following measure to bring down the inflationary pressure in the economy.

Increase in the supply of essential goods:

The Government of Pakistan is regularly monitoring the domestic stock of essential goods and their price in the market. The supply of essential goods is being improved through the import of these commodities.

Supply of essential items through utility store:

The Government of Pakistan is expanding the supply of the essential items such as sugar, wheat, pulses at subsidized rates through the utility stores in the country which are likely to increase to 5000 in 2007-2008.

Restriction on the import of luxury items:

The import of luxury items must be restricted. It will protect s from international inflation and it will be favorable for the balance of payment as well as for price level of goods.

Denationalization:
Nationalized industries should be denationalized and private sector should be allowed to play its role more effectively. In denationalized system foreign investor will invest there money in Pakistan and made more industries. So if the industries increase than there will be more production and less inflation.

Change in taxation system:

The taxation system should be revised in order to encourage the private sector. Tax holidays must be given to expand the industrial sector.

Sick industries problem:

Sick industries should be handed over to private sector and their production and profit can be restored.

Check on unplanned cities: Effective Administration:

The unplanned and unregulated growth of cities should be checked.

The administration should be made effective and clear to increase the output of the country.

Discipline:

Discipline should be restored in factories and office to improve the output of the country.

Co-ordination between Monetary and Fiscal Policy:

Govt. should coordinate the monetary and fiscal policy in such a manner that it should check the rate of inflation.

Special Bazaars:
Govt. has established the Friday and Sunday bazaars in every city to provide the basic

necessities of life at lower prices. These can be improved further in small towns and villages.

Reduction in Interest Rate:

To increase the credit facility to private sector govt. should reduce the bank rate. It will reduce the cost and price of production. Due to the fall in price aggregate demand will also increase.

Increase in the supply of essential goods:

The govt. is regulatory monitoring the domestic stock of essential goods and their prices in the market. The supply of essential goods is being improved through the import of these commodities.

Supply of Essential items through Utility Stores:

The govt. is expanding the supply of essential items such as sugar, wheat, pulses at subsidized rates through the utility stores in the country which are likely to increase to 5000 in 2007-08.

Cash Reserve Ratio and Discount Ratio:

The SBP has increased the cash reserve ratio from commercial banks from 5% to 7% and discount ratio to 9.5% to 9% for controlling the money supply. A variety of methods have been used in attempts to control inflation. Monetary policy Today the primary tool for controlling inflation is monetary policy. Most central banks are tasked with keeping the federal funds lending rate at a low level, normally to a target rate around 2% to 3% per annum, and within a targeted low inflation range, somewhere from about 2% to 6% per annum. A low positive inflation is usually targeted, as deflationary conditions are seen as dangerous for the health of the economy. There are a number of methods that have been suggested to control inflation. Central banks such as the U.S. Federal Reserve can affect inflation to a significant extent through setting interest rates and through other operations. High interest rates and slow growth of the money supply are the traditional ways through which central banks fight or prevent inflation, though they have different approaches. For instance, some follow a symmetrical inflation target while others only control inflation when it rises above a target, whether express or implied. Monetarists emphasize keeping the growth rate of money steady, and using monetary policy to control inflation (increasing interest rates, slowing the rise in the money supply). Keynesians emphasize reducing aggregate demand during economic expansions and increasing demand during recessions to keep inflation stable. Control of

aggregate demand can be achieved using both monetary policy and fiscal policy (increased taxation or reduced government spending to reduce demand) Fixed exchange rates;

Under a fixed exchange rate currency regime, a country's currency is tied in value to another single currency or to a basket of other currencies (or sometimes to another measure of value, such as gold). A fixed exchange rate is usually used to stabilize the value of a currency, vis-a-vis the currency it is pegged to. It can also be used as a means to control inflation. However, as the value of the reference currency rises and falls, so does the currency pegged to it. This essentially means that the inflation rate in the fixed exchange rate country is determined by the inflation rate of the country the currency is pegged to. In addition, a fixed exchange rate prevents a government from using domestic monetary policy in order to achieve macroeconomic stability. Under the Bretton Woods agreement, most countries around the world had currencies that were fixed to the US dollar. This limited inflation in those countries, but also exposed them to the danger of speculative attacks. After the Bretton Woods agreement broke down in the early 1970s, countries gradually turned to floating exchange rates. However, in the later part of the 20th century, some countries reverted to a fixed exchange rate as part of an attempt to control inflation. This policy of using a fixed exchange rate to control inflation was used in many countries in South America in the later part of the 20th century (e.g. Argentina (1991-2002), Bolivia, Brazil, and Chile). Gold standard

Under a gold standard, paper notes are convertible into pre-set, fixed quantities of gold. The gold standard is a monetary system in which a region's common media of exchange are paper notes that are normally freely convertible into pre-set, fixed quantities of gold. The standard specifies how the gold backing would be implemented, including the amount of specie per currency unit. The currency itself has no innate value, but is accepted by traders because it can be redeemed for the equivalent specie. A U.S. silver certificate, for example, could be redeemed for an actual piece of silver. Gold was a common form of representative money due to its rarity, durability, divisibility, fungibility, and ease of identification.[43] Representative money and the gold standard were used to protect citizens from hyperinflation and other abuses of monetary policy, as were seen in some countries during the Great Depression. However, they were not without their problems and critics, and so were partially abandoned via the international adoption of the Bretton Woods System. Under this system all other major currencies were tied at fixed rates to the dollar, which itself was tied to gold at the rate of $35 per ounce. The Bretton Woods system broke down in 1971, causing most countries to switch to fiat money money backed only by the laws of the country. Austrian economists strongly favor a return to a 100 percent gold standard

Wage and price controls

Another method attempted in the past have been wage and price controls ("incomes policies"). Wage and price controls have been successful in wartime environments in combination with rationing. However, their use in other contexts is far more mixed. Notable failures of their use include the 1972 imposition of wage and price controls by Richard Nixon. More successful examples include the Prices and Incomes Accord in Australia and the Wassenaar Agreement in the Netherlands. In general wage and price controls are regarded as a temporary and exceptional measure, only effective when coupled with policies designed to reduce the underlying causes of inflation during the wage and price control regime, for example, winning the war being fought. They often have perverse effects, due to the distorted signals they send to the market. Artificially low prices often cause rationing and shortages and discourage future investment, resulting in yet further shortages. The usual economic analysis is that any product or service that is under-priced is overconsumed. For example, if the official price of bread is too low, there will be too little bread at official prices, and too little investment in bread making by the market to satisfy future needs, thereby exacerbating the problem in the long term. Temporary controls may complement a recession as a way to fight inflation: the controls make the recession more efficient as a way to fight inflation (reducing the need to increase unemployment), while the recession prevents the kinds of distortions that controls cause when demand is high. However, in general the advice of economists is not to impose price controls but to liberalize prices by assuming that the economy will adjust and abandon unprofitable economic activity. The lower activity will place fewer demands on whatever commodities were driving inflation, whether labor or resources, and inflation will fall with total economic output. This often produces a severe recession, as productive capacity is reallocated and is thus often very unpopular with the people whose livelihoods are destroyed (see creative destruction). Cost-of-living allowance

The real purchasing-power of fixed payments is eroded by inflation unless they are inflation-adjusted to keep their real values constant. In many countries, employment contracts, pension benefits, and government entitlements (such as social security) are tied to a cost-of-living index, typically to the consumer price index.[49] A cost-of-living allowance (COLA) adjusts salaries based on changes in a cost-of-living index. Salaries are typically adjusted annually.[49] They may also be tied to a cost-of-living index that varies by geographic location if the employee moves. Annual escalation clauses in employment contracts can specify retroactive or future percentage increases in worker pay which are not tied to any index. These negotiated increases in pay are colloquially referred to as cost-of-living adjustments or cost-of-living increases because of their similarity to increases tied to externally-determined indexes. Many economists and compensation analysts consider the idea of predetermined future

"cost of living increases" to be misleading for two reasons: (1) For most recent periods in the industrialized world, average wages have increased faster than most calculated cost-of-living indexes, reflecting the influence of rising productivity and worker bargaining power rather than simply living costs, and (2) most cost-of-living indexes are not forward-looking, but instead compare current or historical data.

EFFECTS IF INFLATION ON ECENOMY IN PAKISTAN: Negative Effects:

An increase in the general level of prices implies a decrease in the purchasing power of the currency. That is, when the general level of prices rises, each monetary unit buys fewer goods and services, so in Pakistan due to high rate of inflation people have low purchasing power and they cannot get luxury goods and services as well as necessary goods and services. Unpredictable rates of Inflation discourage investments and savings. Because there is no convenient plans for the price level of goods and services, so the investor does not make long term plan for their companies. As in Pakistan there is high and unpredictable inflation rate. So in those types of countries, investor does not predict about the long term planning for their organization. The effects of inflation can be brutal for the elderly who are looking to retire on a fixed income. The rupees that they expect to retire with will be worth less and less as time goes on and inflation goes higher.
Hoarding

People buy consumer durables as stores of wealth in the absence of viable alternatives as a means of getting rid of excess cash before it is devalued, creating shortages of the hoarded objects. Hyperinflation If inflation gets totally out of control (in the upward direction), it can grossly interfere with the normal workings of the economy, hurting its ability to supply.

Allocative efficiency A change in the supply or demand for a good will normally cause its price to change,

signaling to buyers and sellers that they should re-allocate resources in response to the new market conditions. But when prices are constantly changing due to inflation, genuine price signals get lost in the noise, so agents are slow to respond to them. The result is a loss of Allocative efficiency.

Shoe leather cost High inflation increases the opportunity cost of holding cash balances and can induce people to hold a greater portion of their assets in interest paying accounts. However, since cash is still needed in order to carry out transactions this means that more "trips to the bank" are necessary in order to make withdrawals, proverbially wearing out the "shoe leather" with each trip.

Menu costs With high inflation, firms must change their prices often in order to keep up with economy wide changes. But often changing prices is itself a costly activity whether explicitly, as with the need to print new menus, or implicitly.

Business cycles According to the Austrian Business Cycle Theory, inflation sets off the business cycle. Austrian economists hold this to be the most damaging effect of inflation. According to Austrian theory, artificially low interest rates and the associated increase in the money supply lead to reckless, speculative borrowing, resulting in clusters of mal investments, which eventually have to be liquidated as they become unsustainable.

Positive effects

Labor-market adjustments

Keynesians believe that nominal wages are slow to adjust downwards. This can lead to prolonged disequilibrium and high unemployment in the labor market. Since inflation would lower the real wage if nominal wages are kept constant, Keynesians argue that some inflation is good for the economy, as it would allow labor markets to reach equilibrium faster.

Debt relief

Debtors who have debts with a fixed nominal rate of interest will see a reduction in the "real" interest rate as the inflation rate rises. The real interest on a loan is the nominal rate minus the inflation rate.[dubious discuss] (R=n-i) For example if you take a loan where the stated interest rate is 6% and the inflation rate is at 3%, the real interest rate that you are paying for the loan is 3%. It would also hold true that if you had a loan at a fixed interest rate of 6% and the inflation rate jumped to 20% you would have a real interest rate of -14%. Banks and other lenders adjust for this inflation risk either by including an inflation premium in the costs of lending the money by creating a higher initial stated interest rate or by setting the interest at a variable rate.

Room to maneuver

The primary tools for controlling the money supply are the ability to set the discount rate, the rate at which banks can borrow from the central bank, and open market operations which are the central bank's interventions into the bonds market with the aim of affecting the nominal interest rate. If an economy finds itself in a recession with already low, or even zero, nominal interest rates, then the bank cannot cut these rates further (since negative nominal interest rates are impossible) in order to stimulate the economy - this situation is known as a liquidity trap. A moderate level of inflation tends to ensure that nominal interest rates stay sufficiently above zero so that if the need arises the bank can cut the nominal interest rate.

Tobin effect

The Nobel prize winning economist James Tobin at one point had argued that a moderate level of inflation can increase investment in an economy leading to faster growth or at least higher steady state level of income. This is due to the fact that inflation lowers the return on monetary assets relative to real assets, such as physical capital. To avoid inflation, investors would switch from holding their assets as money (or

a similar, susceptible to inflation, form) to investing in real capital projects. See Tobin monetary model

Indicators;

Gross

Domestic

Product

(GDP)

The most important indicator is the GDP report. Basically, the GDP is the widest measure of the state of the economy. The figure is released at 8:30 am EST on the last day of each quarter and reflects the previous quarter. The GDP is the aggregated monetary value of all the goods and services produced by the entire economy during the quarter (with the exception of international activity). The key number to look for is the growth rate of GDP. Generally, the U.S. economy grows at around 2.5-3% per year and deviations from this range can have a significant impact. Growth above this level is often thought to be unsustainable and a precursor to high inflation, and the Fed usually responds by trying to slow down the "overheated" economy. Growth below this range (and especially negative growth) means that the economy is running slowly, which can lead to increased unemployment and lower spending. It is worth noting that each initial GDP report will be revised twice before the final figure is settled upon: the "advance" report is followed by the "preliminary" report about a month later and a final report a month after that. Significant revisions to the advance number can cause additional ripples through the markets. The GDP numbers are reported in two forms: current dollar and constant dollar. Current dollar GDP is calculated using today's dollars and makes comparisons between time periods difficult because of the effects of inflation. Constant dollar GDP solves this problem by converting the current information into some standard era dollar, such as 1997 dollars. This process factors out the effects of inflation and allows easy comparisons between periods. Don't confuse Gross Domestic Product with Gross National Product (GNP). GDP includes only goods and services produced within the geographic boundaries of the U.S., regardless of the producer's nationality. GNP doesn't include goods and services produced by foreign producers, but does include goods and services produced by U.S. firms operating in foreign countries. For example, if a U.S. firm was operating a chain of stores in France, the goods and services produced by those stores would not be included in the GDP, but would be included in the GNP. As the global economy grows, the difference in GDP and GNP is falling for developed countries like the U.S. But for smaller, developing countries, the difference can be substantial.

Consumer

Price

Index

(CPI)

The CPI is the most widely used measure of inflation. The report is released at 8:30 am EST around the 15th of each month and reflects the previous month's data. The CPI measures the change in the cost of a bundle of consumer goods

and services. The bundle includes about 200 types of goods and thousands of actual products, ranging from foods and energy to expensive consumer goods. The prices are measured by taking a sample of prices at different stores. In addition to the overall CPI number, it is important to also look at the "core rate." The core rate excludes volatile goods like food and energy and gives a closer measure of real inflation. Most reports of the CPI numbers will include both the overall and the core numbers. The CPI is also important because it is used to adjust the annual changes to Social Security payments. There has been much debate about how well the CPI measures inflation and some feel that it is an imperfect way to track rising prices

The

Producer

Price

Index

(PPI)

As mentioned above, the PPI is one of the two most important ways to measure inflation (along with the CPI). The PPI is released at 8:30 am EST during the second full week of each month and reflects the previous month's data. The index measures the price of goods at the wholesale level. So, while the CPI tracks the cost paid by consumers for goods, the PPI tracks how much the producers are receiving for the goods. There are three types of goods measured by the PPI: crude, intermediate, and finished. Crude goods are raw materials used in production of something else, intermediate goods are components of a larger product, and finished goods are what is actually sold to a reseller. The finished goods data are the most closely watched because they are the best measure of what consumers will actually have to pay.

Employment

Cost

Index

(ECI)

The ECI is another important measure of inflation. Released at 8:30 am EST on the last Thursday of January, April, July, and November, the ECI measures the cost of labor including wages, benefits, and bonuses. The reason the ECI is thought to be an indicator of inflation is that as wages increase, the added cost is often passed to consumers shortly thereafter in the form of higher prices (inflation). In combination with the productivity report (see below) the ECI can reveal whether the increased cost of labor is justified or not.