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LAHORE, Nov 30: Despite responding positively to the Pakistan’s request for increased market access and enhanced quota for its textile exports, the US administration has expressed its inability to take an affirmative action on it at least till Dec 6 when it intends to move the proposed Trade Promotion Act (TPA) in the Congress for discussion and approval.
This was stated by Commerce Minister Abdul Razak Dawood in response to a question at a press briefing here on Friday morning. He said the approval of the TPA would give more leverage and authority to the American administration to sign trade agreements with several countries. He admitted that no “concrete” headway had so far been made in the trade talks with the US.
Pakistan has requested the US to reduce its tariffs to allow a greater market access to its exporters and enhance textiles quota to make up for the loss in exports during the last more than two- and-a-half months in the wake of the terror raids on the American soil and the subsequent war on Afghanistan.
“Talks are going on and they (the US) have reacted positively. But (as of today) they’ve told us that they are looking at them,” the minister said. He said action on Pakistan’s request was being delayed because of the pending approval of the TPA.
He said TPA was not Pakistan-specific and, hence, if the house rejected it the US government would have to come up with country- specific proposals to help us.
Dawood said the federal secretary for industry was leaving for the US to hold further talks with the American trade officials on the issue of market access and quota enhancement. He, too, would visit the US again for the same purpose next week.
He admitted that the Pakistani exporters were in difficulty as their shipments were held back at the American ports. He said the US authorities usually delayed release of shipments at the end of every year to see that the quota curbs were not violated. But, he said, the situation had worsened this year (because of the Sept 11 terror attacks).
CHINA: The minister, who recently returned from a week-long visit to China, said the Chinese had expressed keen interest in setting up silk industry in Pakistan. For this purpose, he said, they had requested the Pakistan government to allocate special area for setting up a “Silk Park”.
He said the Chinese were interested in entering joint ventures with Pakistani businessmen to establish silk embroidery, printing and garments factories. Initially, he said, “silk fabric would be imported from China for adding value to it.” At a later stage, he said, silk yarn would also be imported to manufacture fabric.
He said the Chinese had also agreed to increase cooperation in the textiles sector. He said Pakistan’s exports to mainland China had increased 20 per cent during 2000-01 over the previous year.
He said he would take a 25-member business delegation to China when President Gen Musharraf starts his visit of the neighbouring country on Dec 21.
He said his “purpose of taking the businessmen to China was to impress upon them to look east and not just west for business” and to enhance business-to-business interaction.
He said the businessmen from the leather, textile, seafood and silk sectors would accompany him on the Chinese visit. He said it would be a serious, “real” business trip, and not for the sake of providing opportunity to someone to get himself photographed with the president. All businessmen going to China would bear the cost of their travel, etc., out of their own pocket, he said.
