SIALKOT, June 28: The annual exports from the city have jumped up to one billion dollars from US$750 million during the current financial year due to the policies of the present government and hard work of local exporters.

Sialkot Chamber of Commerce and Industry president Qaisar Shabir said this while speaking at the inaugural ceremony of the Lahore Stock Exchange Trading Floor in the city, which was also attended by National Assembly Speaker Chaudhry Ameer Hussain and prime minister’s advisor on finance and economic affairs Dr Salman Shah, here on Monday.

SCCI president said the record export increase was a healthy sign for the country’s economic stability. He said the exports of sports, leather, and surgical goods, besides musical instruments had increased manifold.

Mr Shabir said the local exporters had a great potential to explore and capture the international markets by exporting traditional and non-traditional items of the best quality.

He urged the government to announce a package of incentives for the exporters, enabling them to further increase national exports.

He said the government had restored the confidence of foreign business people through introducing investment-friendly policies.

He said the government would soon announce a special package for the local as well as foreign investors to motivate them to bring maximum foreign investment in the country.

Timely completion of the Sialkot International Airport would help double the annual exports from the city, he hoped.