Fifth Generation (Warfare) Monetary Policy at SBP
SBP has gone full ISPR. One should never go full ISPR.
The timeline of SBP’s Reza Baqir’s charm offensive that I provided in my post Sovereignty lies with IMF: Part Deux.
Nov 19: RB interview to Kamran Khan
Nov 20: RB interview to The Profit
Nov 23: RB interview to FT
Nov 23: RB pens Op Ed for Dawn
Nov 24: RB interview to CNBC
I guess the above scorched-earth campaign didn’t have any effect. So
Nov 29: SBP now issues another clarification.
I wish I had come up with the below tweet to describe these addendums to Reza Baqir’s SBP’s monetary policy statement.
There are many tweets describing the clarification, but this sums it up best.
There isn’t anything to analyze in the clarification. It is amusing to see how thin-skinned SBP has become. I have selected a few amusing sentences.
Over the past few weeks, certain sections of the media including op-eds have expressed concerns over the actions of the SBP.Such points are all easier made in hindsight but let us remind ourselves what the situation was actually like back in May and July 2021.It is quite easy, in hindsight, to criticize this decision even though no tangible alternatives were proposed in the op-eds or elsewhere at the time.I really like the above sentence.
Kudos to whoever came up with the below sentence.
In the midst of a once-in-a-century pandemic, it would be imprudent to solely superimpose classical economic theories onto data outturns.That is not all. Saudi Arabia recently provided us with a loan of $4.2 Billion ($3Billion one-year loan callable at 3 days notice and $1.2Billion oil import facility).
SBP thinks calling it a deposit might take attention away from the harsh conditions of the loan.
Others have said it best
Sehban bhai with sage advice.
Azam offering his shoulder.
