A ship carrying containers in the Pakistani port of Gwadar, heading towards China (French)
Pakistan's exports of goods and services to China witnessed an increase of 39.44% during the first five months of the current financial year, which began last July, compared to exports for the same period of the previous year.
The head of Kings Bridge Investment, Omar Malik, was quoted as commenting on the reason for this increase. He explained that there are a number of reasons, but one of them is the presence of many trade and marketing activities between the two countries after the closure that was imposed to confront the Corona pandemic was eased.
“For example, the China International Fair for Trade in Services provided a platform for Pakistani companies to showcase their products and services,” he added.
After that, the 2023 International Textile Exhibition was held in Pakistan, followed by the Food and Agriculture Exhibition, and a healthcare and engineering conference was recently held in Lahore (eastern Pakistan).
“We were given the opportunity at these events to showcase our productivity, quality level and resources,” Malik explained.
According to Chinese customs statistics, sesame seeds are the most important items imported by China from Pakistan in terms of quantity and value.
More than 134 million kilograms of sesame seeds worth $235.36 million were exported to China from July to November 2023, an increase of 480% compared to exports in the corresponding period of the previous fiscal year. Commenting on the issue, Punjab University professor Amjad Magsi explained, “Pakistan is the fifth largest producer of sesame seeds in the world, and when China introduced methods to increase the product, good statistics were achieved.”
He added that Pakistan has very good capacity in the field of agriculture and seed production.
Observing that Chinese companies have brought technologies and GM seeds to Pakistan, Omar Malik said, “They continue to adapt their technologies to our native land, and we have witnessed the successful production of sesame seeds. They are not only producing it, but we are also seeing high yields.”
He believes that if Chinese technology is used in the right way, the advantages of sesame seeds will increase, just like other products that use Chinese technology.
Last October, interim Pakistani Prime Minister Anwarul Haq Kakar considered that the Chinese investments expected to be pumped into the country under the memorandums of understanding between the two sides would stimulate economic growth in Pakistan.
The two sides signed 20 agreements and memorandums of understanding covering cooperation within the framework of the Belt and Road Initiative and the fields of infrastructure, mining, industry, green and low-carbon development, health, space cooperation, digital economy, development cooperation and export of agricultural products to China.
Kakar said at the time that the memorandums of understanding were still in the planning stage and that the implementation of these memorandums would be preceded by assessments of capabilities, market needs, and their impact on exports.
Source: Agencies