KARACHI: Trade Development Authority of Pakistan (TDAP) Chief SM Munir has suggested that both the Pakistan and India will have to separate politic from business to strengthen trade relations.
Stressing the need to promote regional trade among the eight-nation South Asian Association for Regional Cooperation (Saarc), he said that total trade currently stands at $6.7 billion only.
Citing example of the European Union (EU), he said that around 70 percent of the trade was being carried out among the 28 member states. If India and China can deepen trade to around $100 billion despite their history of confrontation, Pakistan and India’s reluctance to expand bilateral trade from the current meagre level of $3 billion (with $2.5bn imports and $500 million exports to India) was not justified, he said.
Muneer added that after achieving great success of ‘Aalishan Pakistan’, Commerce Minister Khurram Dastgir has directed the TDAP to hold another exhibition in New Delhi in April next year.
He said the exhibition generated a business of around $15m along with future prospect deals valued at $20m-25m signed during business-to-business meetings.
Briefing media about the exhibition at TDAP’s head office at FTC building, he said that the response from Indian trade community as well as consumers was overwhelming and around 500,000 people visited the four-day event.
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