FAISALABAD, Aug 16: Commerce Secretary Tasneem M. Noorani has claimed that there will be no negative impact on Pakistani trade and commercial activities due to India getting the status of Most-Favoured-Nation (MFN) with the implementation of the WTO regime.
Talking to reporters here on Monday, he said that Pakistan was not providing the MFN status especially to India but it was a mandatory provision under the WTO agreements for all the 148 countries to give that status to each other after its implementation from the next year.
He said: "India has already given the MFN status to Pakistan but we are planning and contemplating for the same through dialogues and in the light of political scenario of the country."
He further claimed that Pakistan had not changed or took any U-turn on its policy of giving the MFN status to India and this issue would be resolved in the larger national interest.
In reply to a question about the ongoing talks with India, Mr Noorani said that India wanted to carry on dialogues on trade and tourism but Pakistan had keen interest on all bilateral issues. The recent dialogues at the secretary-level were very fruitful and now solid steps would be taken at the round of discussions between foreign ministers, he added.
Talking about the Regional Trade Agreement (RTA), the commerce secretary said that negotiations with Sri Lanka, Iran, Bangladesh, Turkey and China were going on and agreements would be finalized after detailed discussions between the representatives of these countries.
Meanwhile, speaking to members of the All Pakistan Cloth Exporters Association, the commerce secretary said the textile quotas had become hurdle in the future growth of the textile sector as both the government and genuine exporters are fully prepared to play their dynamic role in the quota-free international markets.
It was in this context that the government was opposing any further extension in the quota regime, he said and remarked that it was actually supporting quota mafia and those involved in the export of low quality textile products.
The exporters would take a few months to adjust themselves in the quota-free markets, he said and added that it would provide them an opportunity to capture the world market only because of their quality and cost competitiveness.
About 4,000 tons exceptional flexibility quota from the European Union, the secretary categorically said that the EU would take up this issue on September 14-18 and on its availability the ministry would be in a position to distribute it among the APCEA members whose 987-ton compensatory quota was still pending. Mr Noorani also discussed the issue of Turkish quota and said that a special emissary would be sent soon as Turkish response was very lukewarm.
