Charter of the Economy Spirit than for HSD oil. Four out of the six countries have a lower price for HSD oil than for Motor Spirit. This is the proper pricing policy as HSD oil is used mostly for transporting basic goods while a large part of the consumption of Motor Spirit is in cars owned by the top income quintile of the population. Therefore, the recommended policy is to keep a Rs 10 higher Petroleum Levy on Motor Spirit than on HSD oil. Also, the cascading of the sales tax on the Petroleum Levy must be avoided. Table 24.4: Current Prices in Selected Countries of Motor Spirit and HSD Oil –($) Gasoline(Motor Sprit) (litre/ US$) [1] Diesel(HSD Oil) (litre/ US$) [2] Ratio [2]/[1] Malaysia 0.476 (1.225)* 0.520 (1.338) 1.092 Pakistan 0.700 (2.670) 0.726 (2.768) 1.037 Sri Lanka 0.828 (2.934) 0.535 (1.896) 0.646 Turkey 1.033 (3.182) 0.945 (2.911) 0.914 Bangladesh 1.053 (2818) 0.769 (2.057) 0.730 India 1.233 (4.109) 1.117 (3.722) 0.905 *in Purchasing Parity Dollars(PPP) Source: www.globalpetrolprices.com 24.4. Finance and Insurance Characteristics of the Sector The Finance and Insurance sector is predominantly in the formal sector of the economy. It is, however, still a relatively small sector with the share of GDP of 3 percent. But it has been one of the fastest growing sectors. Banking services account for over 90 percent of the value added in the sector. Currently there are 25 commercial banks operating in Pakistan. Indicators of the size of the banking sector are presented in Table 24.5. Deposits have grown at double-digit rates, although the growth rate has been declining. The growth rate of advances is in the form of a U-shaped curve with a recovery in the growth rate in recent years. Today, the number of branches is close to 15000, implying that there is one branch available for a population of 14,666 persons. 236