Former senior vice president of Lahore Chamber of Commerce and Industry (LCCI) Mian Nauman Kabir has urged the Pakistani businessmen to expedite the process of joint ventures with Iranian counterparts as both the countries have huge potential to reach the US 10 billion dollars trade target.
While talking to a group of exporters here on Monday, Kabir said that Pakistan and Iran have close cultural affiliations and both have remained steady trading partners as well but in recent years, the momentum of trade has been seriously affected. He said that Iran is ready to start barter trade with Pakistan to facilitate the businessmen and to enhance the volume of two-way trade. The business community in the two countries would have to increase interaction to share their experiences in the larger interest of the people of two brotherly nations, he added.
He said that Chambers of Commerce in both countries would have to focus on expansion of trade by holding single country exhibitions and by exchanging trade delegations. He said that dissemination of sector-specific and trade-related information would go a long way in achieving the goal. Both the countries should share their experiences in the field of science and technology also.
He said that Pakistani exporters should initiate joint ventures in agriculture, tourism and metal sectors of Iran. Kabir hoped that Iranian trade planners would ensure greater role to be played by Iran particularly in regional trade. He said Pakistan is eagerly looking forward to expand trade relations with Iran. "It should be a matter of concern for both sides that in 2014, the volume of bilateral trade has decreased to US 229 million dollars which is a record low in this decade. In 2009 and 2008, our bilateral trade was as high as US 1.21 billion dollars and US 1.16 billion dollars respectively," he added.
He said that although imports from Iran to Pakistan are following increasing trend but our exports to Iran are constantly dropping. For example, Pakistan exported goods to Iran to the tune of US 142 million dollars in 2012 which decreased to US 43 million dollars in 2014. In contrast to that Pakistan imports from Iran in 2012 were US 120 million dollars which increased to US 186 million dollars in 2014. He urged the exporters to find ways to increase the trade volume with Iran. He mentioned that Pakistan is already exporting meat to Iran.
He said that governments of Iran and Pakistan and respective private sectors should collaborate with each other on regular basis. He hoped that work on Pak-Iran Gas Pipeline Project will be expedited. It will not only play a significant role in addressing the energy crisis of Pakistan but further augment the trade relations between the two countries. Import of electricity from Iran can also be a good venture, he added.
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