Jubilation is in the air as the nation is celebrating 75th Independence Day today with traditional zeal and fervor.  Though the country is passing through critical juncture of time due to unprecedented economic crisis and political instability, yet for the time being every Pakistani is preoccupied with Independence Day celebrations which is a good omen for the country.

The entire country has worn  a festive look and has turned into green and white colour with Pak flags and national banners fluttering everywhere, adding to the festive look. People are thronging the Jashan-i-Azadi stalls selling dresses, banners, flags, bunting, pin badges, toys and other decorative stuff. . The day's celebrations are going to provide a sigh of relief to the masses from frets and fever of life for the time being.

Today is the day to not only highlight the contribution of our forefathers for the creation of separate homeland for the Muslims of the Subcontinent but it is also an occasion to refresh our resolve and pledge to make the country stronger on every front. Today is the day to resolve to make concerted efforts to make our nation strong, tolerant and become more innovative in order to improve our capabilities for the sake of national prosperity.

During the last few years, our nation is in a fix due to political upheaval, economic crisis, security concerns and also the social mayhem but thank God in recent weeks, things have started taking a positive turn which is a good augury and one can hope for at least economic recovery for the short term if not the long-term basis. As seen the current economic situation has started signs of recovery after remaining in the dock for the last few years.

The biggest parameter to measure this recovery is the rupee's continued recovery streak against the US dollar and the recovery by the Pakistan Stock Exchange which has started gaining points after points in recent days after undergoing record losses earlier this year. 

As reported, the Pak currency took another big strike by gaining another Rs2.54 against the dollar in the interbank market this week which is not only an uptrend but a sign of recovery for the Pak economy. On the one hand, the demand for dollars has slowed down in the market while on the other hand, the sellers are shying away from doing business. The Pakistan Stock Exchange (PSX) has continued its positive momentum this week, gaining over 550 points on daily basis.  On the other hand, the PSX website showed that the benchmark KSE-100 index had risen by 554.29 points, or gained 1.32 percent, to touch the 42,650.53 points after suffering colossal losses in recent months.

This macroeconomic stability trend is obviously due to hopes that the IMF tranche is about to become a reality soon. Moreover, the stock market has risen due to the expected investment from the UAE which is a good omen. Economic experts see greater macroeconomic stability in the offing after IMF programme resumption which is due later this month. The rupee's gradual strengthening and stabilization are also having a positive impact on the stock market as its confidence has risen with the recovery track of Pak currency which is evident from the fact that Stocks have gained precious and the much-needed 877 points.   

As a matter of fact, there are a number of factors for this happy discourse but mainly it is the drastic cut in import bill which has a pleasant effect on the currency market.   The import bill for July was recorded to be substantially lower as compared to the previous month and this has resulted in reducing the country's trade deficit. A rising trade deficit puts rupees under extreme pressure and currency continues to slide down against major currencies but when the trade deficit is under control it, in turn, leads to easing the pressure on the Pak currency.

Another big factor that has helped the rupee to start recovery is the substantial decrease in import payments which have dropped as all letters of credit for oil in July were cleared and all the open positions by exporters were also closed.  This Independence Day, we must resolve to buy and promote locally manufactured goods so that our import bill is controlled and the burden on our foreign exchange reserves is lessened to some extent.  

The purpose to say is today we have not only to celebrate the occasion but we have also to pledge to help the country out of the current crisis before it is too late. And last but not the least, the major challenge confronting the nation is the dangerous drift towards intolerance and retrogressive ideas that defy the ideals of our Quaid Mohammad Ali Jinnah. In fact intolerance has been posing a threat to  our fragile social fabrics and democratic  system. But with collective efforts we can fight out extremism and intolerance from the society.

Published in The Daily National Courier, August, 14 2022

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