Pakistan witnessed a significant upswing in exports to China in October, experiencing a remarkable 70% increase, totaling $368 million compared to the same month in the previous year. This notable boost is attributed to the active engagement of over 200 Chinese businessmen in the Food and Agri Expo held in Karachi, facilitating meetings that led to collaborations between Chinese and Pakistani counterparts. Key exports included sesame, seafood, rice, and various agricultural items.
Ghulam Qadir, the Commercial Counselor of the Pakistan Embassy in Beijing, expressed optimism about continued growth, highlighting plans to export meat to China. He emphasized ongoing efforts to enhance the value of dairy products, chilly, cherries, and sesame seeds. Qadir underscored the potential for increased Chinese investment across diverse sectors, including food and agriculture, textiles, footwear, toys, and electronics. He stressed the importance of technology transfer and collaboration between the two nations.
Qadir stated, “We’re very happy to note that Pakistan’s exports to China for October, as per the Chinese data, have improved by 70%, touching the $368 million figure after a very long time. And there’s an appreciable increase of over $150 million in a month.” He attributed the surge to the successful interactions at the Food and Agri Expo, emphasizing the need to continue fostering such collaborations for sustained positive results.
Anticipating further growth, Qadir outlined efforts to diversify exports, convert sesame seeds into sesame oil and byproducts, and focus on value addition in various sectors. He expressed the expectation of increased exports to China in terms of food and agriculture, textiles, and other potential areas, encouraging more presence of Pakistani players through e-commerce and other platforms.
Qadir also highlighted the significance of copper exports to China, emphasizing the government’s focus on turning copper into value-added products. Regarding Chinese support and investment, he urged Chinese investors to make the best use of the $30 billion market and encouraged enterprises to explore opportunities in labor-intensive sectors, electronics, light engineering, and consumer products. The government is keen on welcoming Chinese investment, particularly in establishing a copper processing plant.
