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In this study we examine the technical efficiency of commercial banking sector of Pakistan. In recent past Pakistan’s commercial banking is making substantial investment and up-gradation in information and communication technology (ICT) in order to keep pace with global banking industry. Due to financial linearization the entry of the foreign banks with advance technology in the commercial banking sector has been increased that inclines other banks to adopt the new technology in order to earn more of market share. To justify the huge investments in computers and related technologies many question arises about the efficiency & productivity growth of the banks due to ICT. Accordingly, this study analyzes the efficiency of a sample of 11 commercial banks for the period 1998 to 2012. Using data envelopment analysis (DEA) we measure the Malmquist productivity index (MPI) to measure total factor productivity (TFP). In this study the time period (1998-2012) has been decomposed into pre-digital reforms (19982005) & post-digital reforms (2006-2012) period, in order to compare the efficiency change after the adaptation of IT by commercial banking sector. The variables are selected under intermediation approach. The results show that technical efficiency has been significantly increased in post-digital reform era and as a result TFP has also been boosted. The results show that MCB has consistently scored the highest efficiency & Malmquist TFP scores.

This research paper discusses the influence of new five year automobile policy announced by Economic Coordination Committee (ECC) in March 2016 for the period from 2016 to 2021 comparing with the old auto policy announced by the Government of Pakistan. The crucial point of this paper is to find the critical aspects of new auto policy and their impact on the profitability of major players in automobile industry of Pakistan. Main objectives of this policy are to help increase the volume with improved quality, catch the attention of investors, creating an extensive competitive environment, minimizing costs, technological improvement, satisfy all stakeholders through a Balance between tariffs and growth, customer satisfaction and Eliminating Monopoly of Existing Car Manufacturers. The important rationale of this paper is to have a look on the prevailing situation of automobile industry and the potential of this industry after the implementation of new auto-policy for 2016-21. It is to analyse whether this policy may influence profitability of the firms those have created their monopoly in this sector of Pakistan. The results of the study reveal that the profitability of major players of the automobile industry those were creating monopolies is not expected to decline even after the new policy. It may because of the trust of people on the local makes or expected ease in maintenance than those of the imported ones. However, the circumstances may change based on the customers’ behavior that may cause the shift of their profit share to the New Entrants. Nevertheless, exploring the industrial alliance in this sector globally is of high importance for better quality, reasonable costs, fuel efficiency and striking designs. Various studies have been conducted to highlight the impacts of different policies announced by the governments for automobile industry worldwide and for the Pakistan as well. Consequently, this study will be useful to seek out the probable challenges to confront in the automobile industry and to provide support for the future policies related to automobile companies and interrelated businesses like leasing, insurance, tracking and auto finance.

On-farm sorting and transportation of postharvest fruit include sorting out defective products, grading them into categories based on quality, distributing them into bins, and carrying bins to field collecting stations. Advances in artificial intelligence (AI) can speed up on-farm sorting and transportation with high accuracy and robustness and significantly reduce postharvest losses. The primary objective of this literature review is to provide an overview to present a critical analysis and identify the challenges and opportunities of AI applications for on-farm sorting and transportation, with a focus on fruit. The challenges of on-farm sorting and transportation were discussed to specify the role of AI. Sensors and techniques for data acquisition were investigated to illustrate the tasks that AI models have addressed for on-farm sorting and transportation. AI models proposed in previous studies were compared to investigate the adequate approaches for on-farm sorting and transportation. Finally, the advantages and limitations of utilizing AI have been discussed, and in-depth analysis has been provided to identify future research directions. We anticipate that this survey will pave the way for further studies on the implementation of automated systems for on-farm fruit sorting and transportation.