Pakistan hit with record-breaking 35.4% inflation in march

Morning! Last Friday, the Jio World Centre in Mumbai hosted the first-ever Indian Met Gala-esque NMACC (Nita Mukesh Ambani Cultural Centre Gala). While it was a star-studded event, the real stars were the paparazzi (from confusing Gigi Hadid with Shakira to calling Tom Holland 'Makri'man'). We’ve got the receipts with this Twitter thread.

In this week’s edition:

🛢️ OPEC+ says less is more in oil production

💸 Pak’s hot inflation data

⏸️ Musks & top AI researchers ask to hit the breaks on AI

📉 Pak’s startups’ funding

- The Itla Squad 💼

Business

Global 🌎️

OPEC thinks ‘less is more’ when it comes to oil production

The price of oil has seen a sharp increase following a surprising move by some of the world's biggest oil exporters. OPEC and its allies, including Russia, made an announcement on Sunday that they would be widening their crude oil production cuts to 3.66 million barrels per day, which amounts to roughly 3.7% of global demand. This decision has led to a significant surge in oil prices.

Why? Analysts believe that the recent decision by OPEC and its allies seems to be an effort to maintain the oil price above $80 per barrel in the coming months. The reason behind this move is the possibility of a weak global economy affecting the demand for oil, and the current sanctions being ineffective in limiting Russia's oil supplies.

There’s backlash to this: The US has urged oil producers to boost output to lower energy prices. The high energy and fuel prices have contributed to inflation, which is causing financial difficulties for many households. Chief economist at KPMG, Yael Selfin, cautioned that the recent surge in oil prices could further complicate the effort to reduce inflation.

TLDR: Oil prices surged after OPEC and Russia announced increased crude oil production cuts. The move is seen as an effort to maintain oil prices above $80 per barrel in the coming months. However, the US has urged for increased production to lower energy prices and curb inflation.

What else is new in news

✶ As it gets ready to announce job cuts, McDonald's has shut down its U.S. offices and asked its corporate employees to work from home until Wednesday.

Local 🇵🇰

Hot inflation data coming through…

It's official: Pakistan is facing an inflation crisis (surprise surprise). According to the latest figures, consumer prices shot up by a staggering 35.4% in March, marking the highest annual increase on record.

Things you might wanna say goodbye to: In March, prices of various food items saw significant increases, with onions topping the list at a staggering 257.6% surge in price compared to last year. Other items such as tea, wheat, and eggs also experienced a significant price hike. In addition, non-food items like textbooks, motor fuel, and stationery also saw high price increases ranging from 45.5% to 74%.

Looking ahead: According to analysts, Pakistan is on a fast track toward hyperinflation, which is a state where prices become uncontrollable and could potentially surge up to 50%.

TLDR: Pakistan is facing an inflation crisis with consumer prices increasing by 35.4% in March, the highest annual increase on record. Prices of various food and non-food items have significantly increased, with onions topping the list at a staggering 257.6% surge in price.

News Flash

✶Looks like Pakistan's dream of becoming an upper-middle-income country by 2047 might remain just that - a dream. According to a new World Bank report, Pakistan's goal of becoming an upper-middle-income country by 2047 may not be achievable due to inadequate investments in human capital.

Tech

Global 🌎️

Musk and top AI specialists to AI race: You are moving too fast

We weren’t the only ones thinking about how to keep up with the pace of this AI revolution. Over 1,800 tech leaders, including Elon Musk and Steve Wozniak (one of the founders of Apple) signed a letter warning that AI adoption is happening too quickly without understanding the consequences.

What does the letter say? The authors of a letter are calling for a six-month pause on training AI systems as there’s a lack of established guidelines for how generative-AI models such as ChatGPT, GPT4, and Bard should operate. If a pause cannot be implemented quickly, the authors suggest that governments should impose a moratorium instead.

Looking ahead: Microsoft and Google have yet to respond to the letter. OpenAI's spokesperson, Hannah Wong, says that the company has spent over six months addressing these issues in GPT-4 and is not currently training GPT-5.

TLDR: Tech leaders, including Elon Musk and Steve Wozniak, signed a letter warning that AI adoption is happening too quickly without understanding the consequences. They are calling for a six-month pause on training AI systems, or a government-imposed moratorium.

What else is new in news

✶Like us, even Google is thinking to cut back on its grocery list in these times. As a part of Google’s latest cost-cutting measures, its small kitchens that offer free snacks and drinks to the employees may shut down on days when they experience reduced traffic.

Local 🇵🇰

Funding for Pak’s startups is down

It seems like Pakistan's startup funding had a case of the "quarter-life crisis," only managing to raise $23.1 million during the January-March quarter, down 86.6% from the previous year.

It’s not all bad: The funding for Pakistani start-ups has increased by 52.5% in the first quarter of 2023, amounting to $23.1 million. This is a significant improvement from the previous quarter. Both the average and median levels of the deal sizes have improved, reaching $3.85 million and $3.25 million, respectively.

Who are the winners? In Q1-2023, transport and logistics startups scored big with $10.1 million. Meanwhile, fin-tech startups banked $9 million, ed-tech stayed at 12.1% with $2.8 million, and e-commerce nabbed $1.2 million.

Looking ahead: Pakistan's startup ecosystem is expected to grow as the global economy recovers in 2024, thanks to its young population and growing middle class. However, Pakistani companies have small funding sizes compared to the global market, according to ICT analyst. Despite this, Pakistan's emerging market status offers long-term opportunities for investors in the startup and venture capital sector.

TLDR: Pakistani startups raised $23.1 million in Q1-2023, down 86.6% from the previous year, but an improvement from the last quarter. Transport and logistics startups scored big with $10.1 million, followed by fin-tech ($9 million), ed-tech ($2.8 million), and e-commerce ($1.2 million).

Tech tour of news

✶Seems like Twitter can’t make up its mind about Pak’s government Twitter account operating in India as it blocks the Pakistani government’s account in India for the third time.

More interesting Itla (اطلاع) we consumed:

🤡 We can’t decide if we find Micheal Che's prank on his cohost Colin Jost at this weekend's update segment at SNL (Saturday Night Live) cruel or hilarious (Che decided to prank Colin by telling the audience to not laugh at his jokes and Jost’s response to the prank only made it better).