Pak-Malaysia trade touches $2.5 billion mark

12 Apr, 2011

According to the data released by Malaysian Ministry of International Trade and Industry (MITI), the bilateral trade between Pakistan and Malaysia touched $2.5 billion mark in 2010, registering overall increase of 34 percent compared to $1.86 billion of previous year.
In an e-mail message to Business Recorder, Pakistan High Commission in Kuala Lumpur on Monday said that since the signing of FTA between Pakistan and Malaysia in 2007, the bilateral trade was following an upward trajectory which can be gauged from the fact that the trade which stood at $1.362 billion in 2007 has increased to $2.5 billion in 2010.
However, High Commissioner Masood Khalid said that the balance of trade is heavily tilted in favour of Malaysia, which needs to be narrowed by including non-traditional items like marble and granite, gems and jewellery, fruits and vegetables, surgical instruments, cutlery, sports goods, spices, leather goods, handicrafts, raw wool, pharmaceutical products, readymade garments, and meat and meat-based products. He also suggested that the Malaysian side might send a trade delegation to Pakistan for identifying specific products for import by Malaysia.
He said that Pakistan High Commission is taking a number of steps to increase exports from Pakistan to Malaysia. Recently, import of beef from Pakistan had started which is now available throughout Malaysia. "Nili Ravi buffalo of Pakistan has been exported to Malaysia to help Malaysia establish a pilot breeding project, and efforts are underway to export Pakistani mangoes to ensure their availability throughout Malaysia," he added.
The High Commissioner said that as an endeavour to bring private sectors of the two countries closer to each other and to forge co-operation between the two countries in four key areas--agriculture and Halal sector, infrastructure development, power and energy and IT and education-- the Board Of Investment (BoI) of Pakistan and Malaysian Industrial Development Authority (MIDA) had jointly organised a one-day seminar in Kuala Lumpur on March 31, 2011 which proved quite successful in bringing the private sectors of the two countries under one roof for business networking and match making.
He said that a number of MoUs and agreements have been signed between the two countries to forge meaningful and result-oriented co-operation in agriculture, Halal sector, higher education as well as in the field of transportation. Besides, Pakistan-Malaysia Joint Business Council had also been launched to promote interaction between the private sectors of the two countries.
According to the data, exports of Pakistani rice to Malaysia had registered an increase of 124.80 percent in 2010 with export of 198.62 million ringgits as against RM 88.3 million of previous year. Cotton yarn export registered an increase of 66.21 percent with RM ringgits 37.87 million in 2010 compared to ringgits RM 22.78 million last year. Bed linen registered an unprecedented increase of 77.33percent with an export of ringgits RM 3.42 million compared to ringgits RM 1.93 million of previous year. However, the exports which remain in the negative zone were fish, onion, maize, woven fabrics and synthetic staple fibre, electronic appliances, line telephony, part and accessories.
On the Malaysian side, the biggest increase in export to Pakistan was recorded in palm oi,l which registered 45.14 percent increase; natural rubber registered an increase of 40.57 percent; fibre board wood registered an increase of 18.46 percent, whereas the items which remained in the negative zone were insecticides, synthetic yarn and automatics, data processing machine, etc. The High Commissioner urged the business community in Pakistan to arrange business delegations to visit Malaysia and to participate in trade fairs and exhibitions there to improve the trade deficit.

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