Pakistan Industrial and Traders Associations Front (PIAF) has welcomed the continuation of GSP plus status to Pakistan in UK market after Brexit. The British High Commissioner to Pakistan, Richard Crowder has confirmed that UK wants to maintain and strengthen the access to the UK markets for developing countries after leaving the EU. For Pakistan, which benefits from zero tariffs on two-thirds of all products export to the UK, we aim to maintain these levels of access, said PIAF Chairman Irfan Iqbal Sheikh in a statement here Friday.
Sheikh said that PIAF feels that the assurance by the UK High Commissioner in Pakistan that the country's products would continue to enjoy preferential treatment in the UK market after Brexit is really heartening. He said that there were some apprehensions in the market that Pakistan and some of the other developing countries could lose GSP plus status in the British market in the post-Brexit period. It is very reassuring that such apprehensions have been removed and the Brexit would not make any difference on the present trade relations between the UK and Pakistan, he added.
However, Irfan Sheikh said that exporters have failed to materialize new export order which will further decline exports in the coming months, as their genuine demands were not met by the government. The PIAF Chairman alleged that the FBR officials are treating exporters and tax-payers as thieves and arbitrarily debiting amounts directly from the banks accounts of exporters. He said that trade deficit has touched US$30 billion; markets due to decrease in exports while, on the other hand, our competitor Bangladesh's textile exports alone have touched $28 billion mark and they have set their target of US$35 billion in next five years.
Presently, Pakistan has the highest-ever cost of doing business/manufacturing as compared to its eight competing countries in the region. He said that duty-free access was of critical importance for Pakistan but government will have to implement its commitments to provide incentives to the exporters.
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