Domestic Terms of Trade and Public Policy for Agriculture in Pakistan

Despite the crucial importance of information on intersectoral terms of trade in the formulation of a host of public policies, the official statistical system in Pakistan is yet to generate a statistical series of the terms of trade for the .agricultural sector on a regular basis. A number of views expressed on Pakistan’s agriculture appear to be based either on results of studies that are now outdated, or on a complete neglect of the existing data that could be processed to calculate the terms-of. trade indices. This paper attempts to provide information on the movement of terms of trade for the agricultural sector for the period from 1951-52 to 1983-84. The impact of changes in terms of trade on farm output, distribution of income and efficient use of resources is also traced.