SIALKOT, July 8: The chairman, Pakistan Hosiery Manufacturers Association (PHMA), Sialkot Region, Arshad Javaid Sandal has urged the textile, hosiery and knitwear manufacturers and exporters to prepare themselves for the fast approaching WTO challenges.

They should focus on identifying new WTO opportunities, post-quota regime and global marketing access and technologies, he said while talking to newsmen on Thursday. Arshad Javaid Sandal said that the survival of Pakistan's textile sector direly required the detailed research in this regard.

It should push the government to prepare a suitable national trade policy and ensure safety of business by adopting all the advanced global trends of trade. He stressed upon the business community engaged with hosiery and knitwear to give up stereotype thinking and divert their attention to marketing.

He said that the free trade agreement had been singed between Chile and the US, and Pakistani businessmen could fully take advantage of this pact by exporting their hosiery and knitwear exports through the active role of Federal Finance Ministry.

He said that anti-dumping laws might affect Pakistan's yarn and fabric sectors. He said that the nature of relationship had changed between the buyers and the sellers.

"We should also focus on innovation and taking small initiatives besides looking at our margins otherwise our business would become profitless," he said. He voiced concern about security compliance by exporters on all shipments, "which is very hard for everyone."

He stressed the need of setting up a college for textile studies especially on sports fashion & wear and laboratories for identifying the behaviour of garments at Sialkot. He said that Sialkot business community had a great potential and was capable of coping with the new global challenges of the WTO.