ISLAMABAD: A delegation of China Council for Promotion of International Trade (CCPIT) led by its Vice President Wu Dengguo visited the Islamabad Chamber of Commerce and Industry (ICCI) here on Thursday and showed interest in exploring opportunities of joint ventures (JVs) and investment in Pakistan.
Representatives of Hunan Federation of Industry and Commerce, Hunan Provincial Department of Research, Hunan Provincial Department of Science and Technology, Hunan Provincial Commission of Development and Reforms, Hunan Provincial Commission of Agriculture and others were in the delegation.
Speaking at the occasion, CCPIT Vice President Wu Dengguo said that the purpose of the visit of the Hunan Province delegation was to explore business prospects in Pakistan and find out areas that offered good opportunities of collaboration between the business sectors of both countries.
He said that Hunan has a population of 70 million people and was a big market for Pakistani products.
He said Hunan Province was famous for fish, rice, manufacturing of supercomputers, construction machinery, maritime and energy equipment, automobile and parts, and stressed that Pakistani companies should focus on promoting cooperation in these areas with counterparts in Hunan.
Hunan Federation of Industry and Commerce Vice Chairman Yang Guan Glin said that some companies from Hunan were already doing business in Pakistan and more were interested in forming JVs and investing in the Pakistani market.
He said issues like lack of information about trade laws and regulations of both countries should be addressed to promote bilateral trade and economic relations to reach the full potential of both sides. He said his federation has 200,000 members in Hunan and invited the ICCI delegation to visit Hunan for exploring business opportunities.
In his welcome address, ICCI President Ahmed Hassan Moughal said that the China Pakistan Economic Corridor (CPEC) offered great opportunities for collaboration to the private sectors of Pakistan and China and efforts should be made to exploit these opportunities.
He said Chinese companies should bring in technology and machinery and set up JVs in the Special Economic Zones (SEZs) of Pakistan being set up under CPEC.
He assured that ICCI would fully cooperate with CCPIT in promoting business linkages between entrepreneurs of both countries.
ICCI Senior Vice President Rafat Farid said that the Young Entrepreneurs Forum of ICCI and China Young Entrepreneurs Association have established good rapport and young entrepreneurs of both countries should be fully supported and facilitated in establishing long-term and sustainable business partnerships that would further strengthen trade and economic relations between Pakistan and China.
