Pakistan has invited investors of the Chinese province of Yunnan to invest in fertiliser and copper downstream industries in the country. The offer was made by Javed Ilyas of Pakistan-China Business Council at a seminar held to introduce the economic and trade situation of Yunnan province by Deputy Director General of Commerce Zhu Guo Jun on Thursday. A delegation of Yunnan province headed by Chinese Council for Promotion of International Trade (CCOIC) Chairman Zhang Likun is in Karachi to attend Pakistan Expo-2005.
Addressing the seminar, Zhu Guo said that the province was rich in phosphorous resources and was called the "kingdom" of non-ferrous metal and herbal medicines.
He said that Pakistan had been an important trade partner of Yunnan since long ago. In the recent years, trade volume between Yunnan and Pakistan had increased by 368 percent, he added.
He said the main products, exported from Yunnan to Pakistan, were aromatic oil, phosphorous acid, calcium super-phosphate, tin etc.
He recalled that in 2003, a Pakistani merchant had invested 220,000 dollars in a food project in Yunnan.
The Chinese province had carried out many contracting engineering and labour co-operation business in Pakistan, he said, adding that the major projects accomplished included a water supply project worth 15.98 million dollars in Karachi and an overhead bridge project at a cost of 37.4 million dollars.
A labour contract for a specialist hospital is currently in progress.
Zhu said that Yunnan province, situated on south-west border of China, was one of the regions with shortest distance to Pakistan. It had been an important land route, connecting China with Southeast Asia and south Asian countries, he added.
He said that the first China-South Asia Business Forum was held in Kunming in December last year, which was attended by 400 guests from China and south Asian countries. The forum was also attended by Export Promotion Bureau (EPB) Chairman Tariq Ikram.
The Deputy Director General of Commerce invited Pakistani businessmen to attend the Kunming's import and export commodities fair, scheduled to be held from June 6 to 10. The fair, which has contributed total trade volume worth 21.3 million dollars in terms of trade and investment, had a special pavilion for South Asia, he added.
Javed Ilyas, in his speech, said the bilateral trade between Pakistan and China had increased by 30 percent to three billion dollars over the years.
He said that logistics, especially shipping facilities, had improved in the Yunnan, which could help promote the trade with the Yunnan province.
He said that presently the trade balance was in favour of the province, which could be corrected by increasing exports from Pakistan.
Javed Ilyas welcomed the Chinese decision to import Basmati rice and fruits and vegetable from Pakistan.
The Pak-China Business Council Chairman requested the Chinese official to include Pakistan in the trade agreement likely to be concluded by the Yunnan province with Laos, Vietnam, Maynamar and India to promote trade and economic co-operation between these countries.
The seminar was also addressed by the Chinese Consul General Sun Chunye.
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