Another Steep Rise.

The government's move to seek out relief from the IMF over the implementation of sales and income tax-related measures must be welcomed. After two years of hard work, the PTI government can claim the turnaround of some important economic indicators such as the current account balance, but in real terms, the real picture of the economy is still dismal. Employment opportunities are still thin and hard to come by, but the most problematic issue remains inflation for the average member of society.

Prices of staple items continue to rise, with commodities such as eggs now also on the list of expensive produce. The IMF has now given the government another six months to bring in sales and income tax adjustments, but this provides little relief, considering that most items in the country's basket of goods are now posting increases. The average citizen is now spending a greater proportion of their monthly income on food alone, when they can that is. Those below the poverty line are slowly being deprived of food items they could have relied on in the past. Vegetables such as onions have posted increases in this year; you can add this to the growing list of...