Mohamed Salim Kapadia, President of Pakistan-Romania Business Forum and former senior vice-president of Karachi Chamber of Commerce & Industry, has welcomed the Trade Policy announced by Commerce Minister Humayun Akhtar Khan for the fiscal year 2004-2005.
While expressing his views on the policy, Kapadia has said: "Pakistan government has broaden it's scope and has taken good and timely measures for the growth of our export, which will help the exporters of textile goods after post-WTO."
He opined that if all these measures, framed in the policy, are maintained and implemented in it's true sense, then the export target of US $13.7 billion is very easily achievable.
"It is encouraging to note the facilities provided to the units operating in EPZ to facilitate the units to import required machinery and raw materials and also allowed them to be sold or shifted to tariff areas."
"Our government has taken a right step to provide inland freight subsidy at the rate of 25 percent to marble, granite and furniture factories meant for export, he said, adding, "this subsidy will minimise their cost and will definitely help them to secure more orders from abroad."
The more significant step as taken by the commerce minister is to have waived the condition of value-addition on re-export of imported goods, he said and added this step will greatly help increase the flow of our export trade, nevertheless it has to be checked that it should not hamper the production of our country.
"Still we have a trade imbalance of US $3.00 billion for 2004-5, which gap is likely to be widened in the wake of liberalised import policy." He said: "If proper check is not made to control the liberalisation of import trade then the trade imbalance will be increased, which will adversely affect our export target and the post-WTO era for our textile goods will be more tough."
"The main thing is to maintain the policy in letter and in spirit to achieve our desired goals."
He congratulated Humayun Akhtar Khan for presenting such a policy that will help improve Pakistan's economy in the coming years.-PR