Commerce Minister Humayun Akhtar Khan, who met the senior US officials and interacted with American business leaders, has reported "very good progress" vis-à-vis efforts for negotiating a Pakistan-US free trade agreement (FTA).
"We have had good discussions with senior US officials and the response of the American think tanks and entrepreneurs to the roll out of the outcome of the study on Pakistan-US FTA was also heartening," he said on Thursday after holding several meetings with American officials.
During his meetings with officials, including US Commerce Secretary Carlos Gutierrez, US trade representative Susan Schwab and Under Secretary of State for Economic, Business and Agriculture Josette S Shiner, the Commerce Minister also discussed the Pakistan-US bilateral investment treaty and establishment of reconstruction opportunity zones in Pakistan.
"We discussed about the FTA negotiations, the bilateral investment treaty we intend to move very fast on the establishment of reconstruction opportunity zones and a US team would be on its way to Pakistan shortly to look into the issue in detail," he said about the outcome of his meetings.
Pakistan's Ambassador to the US Mahmood Ali Durrani was also present during the meetings with senior officials. About his interaction with the US business leaders at the Institute for International Commerce, Humayun said the roll out of the study spelled out enormous benefits of the FTA for both the countries.
The Minister also met Senator Lincoln D Chafee, a member of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee, and Senator Jay Rockefeller, member of the US Finance Committee as America's trade agreements have to go through the Senate Finance Committee.
"The study on FTA quantifies the problem it makes easier to reach American business and textile industry that we are not causing any harm to the US local textile industry and it also makes it easier for us to reach approval forums - various House and Senate Committees at the Hill as we are now able to substantiate our argument with sound facts and figures," he said.
Earlier, the Commerce Minister addressed a gathering of leading American entrepreneurs, and informed them about Pakistan's remarkable economic turnaround.
He said Pakistan was for increasing its trade with the international community as in line with President Pervez Musharraf's vision it wanted greater trade and not aid to sustain its growth.
Gary Hufbauer, representing Institute for International Commerce and Javed Burki, an economic expert, also addressed the gathering and spoke about the benefits of the FTA between the two nations.
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