Exchange of trade delegations and B2B contacts can help boost mutual trade and economic ties between Saudi Arabia and Pakistan and chambers of the two countries can play an instrumental role in this regard. Engr Sultan Bin Mahdi expressed these views while leading a four-member Saudi delegation at the Lahore Chamber of Commerce and Industry on Saturday. He called for timely dissemination of trade related information and exchange of trade delegations.
Pakistan and Saudi Arabia have strong and brotherly relations and these can be strengthened with the exchange of trade and cultural delegations. Speaking on the occasion, LCCI Senior Vice President Khawaja Shahzad Nasir said there are enormous scope to expand the economic relations between Saudi Arabia and Pakistan. Saudi businessmen should come and invest in various industries which have lucrative opportunities, he said.
Saudi Arabia is important trading partner of Pakistan as it comes at 6th place and 12th place among the top importing and exporting countries for Pakistan respectively. It is worth mentioning that Saudi Arabia has the largest economy in the Arab world and the second-largest economy in the region, after Turkey. He called for solid measures to expand and promote trade between Pakistan and Saudi Arabia which is following decreasing trend from the last few years.
LCCI Vice President Faheem-ur-Rehman Saigal said that petroleum products consist of almost half of the total imports from Saudi Arabia. Pakistan mainly imports oil and oil products from Saudi Arabia, which accounts for 90 percent of our total import bill. In turn, Pakistan supplies rice, meat, meat products, spices and fruit, home textile products, chemicals, footwear and leather goods. The fact of the matter is that Pakistan caters to a merely 0.3 percent of the import market of Saudi Arabia", he added.
He said that Pakistan and Saudi Arabia need to find new avenues for the expansion of bilateral trade. We consider exchange of trade delegations is one of the most effective ways of enhancing trade. Likewise, we have to identify areas of joint ventures. Pakistan has manpower, land and technology. There can be a win-win situation for both the countries if Saudi investors team up with our local industrialists, he added.