ISLAMABAD: The United Kingdom (UK) is the third largest global trading partner of Pakistan and is keen to double its bilateral trade up to £7 billion with Pakistan in the next few years to achieve the mutual goal of prosperity for both countries.
This was stated by Mahesh Mishra, Counsellor and Group Head (Economic and Trade), British High Commission, while addressing the business community during his visit to Islamabad Chamber of Commerce and Industry (ICCI), said a press release on Wednesday.
The Commercial Counsellor said that the UK was uniquely placed to support Pakistan in transforming its economy. He said that the UK is also third largest investor in Pakistan and more investors want to explore Pakistan for joint ventures and investment.
He said that around 1.6 million Pakistanis living in the UK are sending remittances of about USD 4.5 billion and providing important support to Pakistan’s economy. He said that the UK has placed Pakistan in the “Enhanced Framework” to provide the same level of market access (preferential tariffs) for exports to the UK as were available to it under the EU’s GSP Plus scheme. He highlighted the UK’s development support to Pakistan in cooperation with the World Bank Group and Asian Development Bank for its economic reform programmes.
He said that he would love to work with the private sector of Pakistan to further promote bilateral trade ties between the two countries.
Speaking at the occasion, Muhammad Shakeel Munir, President ICCI said that their bilateral trade between Pakistan and UK was still below their actual potential which could be improved with strong mutual efforts of private sectors of both countries.
“Pakistan is an attractive market for business and investment and stressed that the investors of the UK should come to Pakistan with technology transfer to capitalize on these opportunities, he added.”
He emphasized for frequent exchange of trade delegations and participation in each other’s exhibitions to explore new areas of mutual cooperation between Pakistan and UK.
He said that both countries were doing trade in limited items and they should focus on diversification of trade to achieve better results. He also highlighted the opportunities of JVs and investment in CPEC projects for UK investors.
