ISLAMABAD
In a move to revise or review the decade old free-trade agreement between Pakistan and China, the 8th round of talks on Pak-China FTA is going to be held in Beijing on September 14, 15, 2017. Pakistan is reportedly much interested in revising the agreement keeping in view the rising trade imbalance with China.
The trade deficit is a worrisome development and keeps on widening amidst rising imports which were valued at $ 7.82 billion for the financial year 2016-17, while exports stood at only $ 1.4 billion.
According to sources, various rounds of talks were held so far, while Pakistan is trying to win better access to the Chinese market, besides seeking zero duty on some products to increase the export to China.
The Federal Minister for Commerce and Textile Industry, Mohammad Pervaiz Malik, during a meeting at his ministry on Friday, has asked negotiating teams of FTAs to work vigorously to conclude the agreements in the best interest of Pakistan and at the same time addressing the concerns of the local industry.
Apart from better negotiation with China to revise the FTA, the minister, according to sources, has also asked the team to wisely negotiate with Thailand for the planned FTA. He said Pakistan is looking to access a huge untapped market of the whole East Asian Region. From the same region, the minister added, Pakistan has already concluded successful FTAs with Malaysia and Indonesia.
According to experts, the increase in exports to China and Malaysia post implementation of trade agreements has been marginal in terms of exports as a percentage of total bilateral trade. With the advancements in technology, Pakistan’s imports of electronics and machinery from China have increased by more than 6 times since the FTA was signed. Pakistan’s top export to China, then and now is cotton.
Pakistan and China were negotiating for the second phase of Pak-China FTA since 2011, however, according to sources, the negotiations had been halted as Pakistani businessmen were protectionists and Chinese wanted more liberalisation.
The FTA on trade in goods was signed on November 24, 2006, and implemented on July 7, 2007. The FTA on trade in services was signed on February 21, 2009, and in operational since October 10, 2009.
