The government of Pakistan has decided to set up a Trade Office in Shanghai, which would become operational immediately after Eid-ul-Fitr, said Consulate General-designate Zaffaruddin Mahmood. Addressing the textile tycoons in the head-office of the Pakistan Textile Exporters Association (PTEA) here on Sunday, he said that China has signed agreements of 'most favoured nation' (MFN) status with 190 countries, including Pakistan.
In addition to it, the two countries inked yet another exclusive agreement to promote bilateral trade, he added.
He said under this agreement, Pakistan could export as many as 700 products to China at special subsidised duty rates.
He said undoubtedly, China has a strong industrial buyer yet it is a big potential consumer market and Pakistan must exploit this potential to increase its exports to China.
He said that Shanghai is the business capital of China where more than 40,000 companies were operating, adding the Trade Office in Shanghai will provide a direct access to Pakistani exporters to their potential Chinese as well as other international buyers.
Zaffaruddin Mahmood said a Special Meeting Room will be provided in the proposed Trade Office to the Pakistani exporters visiting Shanghai to have meeting with their buyers, adding it would also extend charged facility of telephone and fax in addition to arranging translators for the visiting Pakistani delegates and exporters.
He said that PIA was also expected to start a direct flight to Shanghai to facilitate exporters intending to explore Chinese markets.
Commenting on the new World Trade Order (WTO), he said Pakistan will get rid of quota restriction from January 2005, but it will remain clamped on China up to 2008. During this grace period, Pak businessmen should launch joint venture in addition to establishing strong business relations with their Chinese counterparts to work as partner in post-quota regime.
Zaffaruddin Mahmood called upon the textile exporters to visit and explore Chinese markets to increase Pak exports.
Quoting resent export figures, he said the value of Pakistani export to China was $800 million, including 80 percent of textiles, adding it could be easily increased manifold in the years to come.
He recommended that businessmen from Faisalabad should have aggressive marketing strategies and in this connection, they should encourage trade delegations.
Earlier, PTEA Chairman Faiq Jawed, in his address of welcome, said the Pakistan Textile Exporters Association was the biggest textile association in the county. It was formerly known as All Pakistan Cloth Exporters Association, and was predominantly a textile quota handling body.
With the phasing out of textile quota regime, a complete transformation in functioning and objectives of the trade became necessary and hence the change in name and expansion in scope and operations of the Association.
He said China was one of the biggest cotton producing and textile garments exporter countries, but there was still a huge potential for Pak textile exports, adding the government must encourage exporters to explore the Chinese markets in a big way.
Faiq Jawed said that China has a billion plus consumer market and despite the economy of scale and production cannot meet the entire demand of its big population.
More over the wave of reformation is sweeping the country, and the government policy of opening up its domestic markets under the demands of new would trade order, is being implemented and the Chinese are acclimatising themselves to new fashions, new trend and luxury items.
The PTEA chief said with the introduction of Western culture and growing prosperity and rising standard of living, the demand for textile items was bound to grow bigger and bigger, adding that lack of tapping of this potential has been the biggest weakness of Pak marketing and in this connection, the Trade Office at Shanghai could play a major role in bridging this gap.
Later, Faiq also presented a book and a memento of the Association to Zaffaruddin Mahmood.