IT IS FITTING that Manmohan Singh, who unshackled Indian trade and industry as the country’s finance minister in 1991, was the son of an importer. His father’s firm in Peshawar brought dry fruit and spices to India from Afghanistan. As a schoolboy, Mr Singh would fill his pockets with almonds and raisins that his classmates tried to steal. Even from an early age he appreciated the fruits of international trade.