www.thefinancialdaily.com  New SBP chief has tough days ahead Kardar appointed as Governor SBP KARACHI: President of Pakistan Thursday appointed Shahid Hafiz Kardar as new Governor State Bank of Pakistan for a period of three years. Kardar takes charge at a time when massive damage from flooding has strained the already fragile economy. Governor Kardar is expected to adopt a tougher line on government spending than his predecessor to try to bring fiscal policies more in line with monetary policy. Food prices are fuelling inflation and the flood damage is seen dragging growth back to between zero and 2 per cent this fiscal year from 4.1 per cent a year earlier . "We all know what the issue is -- the issue is mainly fiscal discipline," Kardar told Reuters in response a question on how he plans to tackle inflation. "If we can correct the fiscal side, the pressure on government borrowings, then the inflationary impact can be eased too." Analysts say the inflationary pressures will probably leave Kardar little choice but to maintain the current monetary policy settings for now, although Kardar was more cautious about the outlook. "It's too early to say. It will become clearer by the end of the month," said Kardar, when asked about the direction of monetary policy. "He will face the challenge of aligning the tighter monetary stance in line with the fiscal stance at a time when the fiscal deficit is bound to rise further because of the floods," said Mohammed Sohail, chief executive of brokers Topline Securities. "But Kardar is pretty energetic and active and will hopefully try to bring more discipline in line with IMF targets."