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Govt committed to finalise FTA with GCC

ISLAMABAD: Pakistan is committed for finalising the free trade agreement (FTA) with Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) to enhance the multilateral trade.

Text of initial frame work on FTA was completed with Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) which comprise six countries, including Saudi Arabia, Bahrain, Oman, Qatar, Kuwait and the United Arab Emirates, senior official of ministry of commerce told APP on Friday.

He said negotiation on third round of FTA between Pakistan and GCC countries to be resumed after joint ministerial level meeting in GCC's countries presided by Bahrain. Commerce minister of GCC countries would meet at the end of August 2017 where Pakistan-GCC FTA will be on priority agenda.

He said negotiations on FTA between Pakistan and six GCC states would also be discussed in coming negotiation round for concluding the agreement.

The official said Pakistan and GCC countries are committed to trade liberalisation and promotion of bilateral trade and business relations. Priority of both sides is to promote private sector to enhance business contacts and increase trade volume, he said.

The official said Pakistan would have huge opportunity to export rice, meat, fruits and also investment in agro-processing unit in Pakistan. GCC countries had opportunity to concentrate on tourism, manufacturing and services sectors of Pakistan.


https://www.thenews.com.pk/print/221386-Govt-committed-to-finalise-FTA-with-GCC
 
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Will Pakistan going to outsource Govt. owned companies to Chinese instead of returning loan?
 
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Korean firms keen to establish JV in Pakistan

LAHORE: Economic growth of Pakistan has impressed the Korean companies and they are eager to establish and develop their business operations in collaboration with their Pakistani counterparts.

These views were expressed by South Korean National Assembly speaker Chung Sye Kyun, while speaking at the Lahore Chamber of Commerce and Industry on Wednesday. Kyun said that Pakistan is blessed with valuable mineral and human resources and the two countries are enjoying good historic relations, while a number of Korean companies were already working in Pakistan successfully.

He expressed optimism that the volume of trade between Pakistan and South Korea will increase, as both the governments are taking measures to get the desired results. The Korean delegation held a number of high-profile meetings with the government officials and representatives of private sector, he said.

LCCI president Abdul Basit said that the exchange of parliamentary delegations between the two countries is indeed a commendable activity. South Korea is famous for its spectacular rise from under-developed economy to developed, high income economy in just a few decades. South Korea is pioneer in export-led growth model. Pakistan needs advice to increase its exports, he added. “We need to promote bilateral trade with each other, as there is immense potential between the two countries,” the LCCI president added.

https://www.thenews.com.pk/print/222556-Korean-firms-keen-to-establish-JV-in-Pakistan
 
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Exports to Russia increases by 10pc in three months

ISLAMABAD: Pakistan's exports to Russia increased by 10 percent in June, 2017 as compared to May 2017, which showed positive sign for enhancing the trade ties between the two countries.

Pakistan and Russia have agreed to sign Free Trade Agreement for increasing bilateral trade and improving long term economic ties, said senior official of Ministry of commerce here on Thursday.

"Russian President Vladimir Putin during his meeting with then Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif on the sidelines of Shanghai Cooperation Organization (SCO) offered the agreement, which Pakistan accepted," he added.

He said the trade turnover between Russia and Pakistan has slightly increased and both of the countries have huge potential for economic cooperation in future, he said.

He said that Pakistan is exploring Russian markets to boost exports of food products to take advantage of the vacuum created after Moscow banned food imports from European countries.

The official said that Pakistani citrus, rice, potatoes and mangoes are making their way into the Russian market.

He said Pakistan had huge opportunity to export fresh meat and poultry, vegetables which include carrot, cabbage and beet-root, and fruits including dates, dry fruits, apple and plum in Russian market.

The government is committed to support Pakistani exporters for gaining facilities to increase excess and competitiveness in the Russian markets.

Both sides were also willing to sign Preferential Trade Agreement (PTA) before the FTA to get excess to Russian market for enhancing trade facilities to the exporters.


http://www.brecorder.com/2017/08/10/364309/exports-to-russia-increases-by-10pc-in-three-months/
 
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Overseas Pakistanis remit US $1.54 bln in July 2017

KARACHI: Overseas Pakistani workers remitted US $1541.67 million in July, the first month of the fiscal year 2017-18 (FY18), as compared with US $ 1328.18 million received during the same period in the preceding year.

A State Bank of Pakistan (SBP) announcement here on Thursday said that during July 2017, the inflow of workers remittances amounted to US $ 1541.67 million, which is 16.2% less than June 2017 and 16% more than July 2016.

The country-wise details for the month of July 2017 show that inflows from Saudi Arabia, UAE, USA, UK, GCC countries (including Bahrain, Kuwait, Qatar and Oman) and EU countries amounted to US $408.84 million, US $334.63 million, US $193.7 million, US $199.18 million, US $ 192.02 million and US $ 52.08 million respectively compared with the inflow of US $378.69 million, US $ 293.72 million, US$ 169.68 million, US $143.61 million, US $169.61 million and US $35.74 million respectively in July 2016.

Remittances received from Norway, Switzerland, Australia, Canada, Japan and other countries during July 2017 amounted to US $161.22 million together as against US $137.13 million received in July 2016.

https://www.samaa.tv/economy/2017/08/overseas-pakistanis-remit-us-1-54-bln-in-july-2017/
 
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Turkish firms eye more investment in Pakistan

Around 15,000 member companies of Anatolian Tigers Businessmen Association (ASKON) are ready to support Pakistani companies and institutions, a statement said on Saturday.

“Turkish businessmen are eager to share their experience, knowledge and capital with their Pakistani brothers,” said Mustafa Koca, chairman, ASKON, addressing the “Pakistan-Turkey Business Opportunities Conference” as the chief guest.

The event was organised by the Rawalpindi Chamber of Commerce & Industry (RCCI) in collaboration with All Industrialists & Businessmen Association of Turkey (TUMSIAD) in Istanbul.

The conference was attended by over 700 businessmen from Pakistan and representatives of over 150 Turkish companies.

In his keynote address, Raja Amir Iqbal, president RCCI, urged the Turkish counterparts to take advantage of the favourable investment and business environment in Pakistan.

"Pakistan has over 185 billion tons of coal reserves which were equivalent to 618 billion barrels of crude oil reserves in terms of energy output, while the country has 31.3 trillion cubic meters of natural gas reserves,” said Iqbal.

He urged the businessmen of both countries to play their role to enhance bilateral trade, which was about $610 million in 2016.

Iqbal also briefed the Turkish businessmen about the multi billion-dollar China Pakistan Economic Corridor (CPEC) project which will transform the entire region into a hub of economic activities.

Speaking on the occasion, Mustafa Riza Arsan, vice president Turkey-Pakistan Business Council of the Foreign Economic Relations Board (DEIK), shared his experience about doing business and making investments in Pakistan.

“We found Pakistan as the most business friendly
country where investments are safe and offer high return in the entire region,” said Arsan.

Syed Ali Asad Gilani, Charge d’ Affairs of Pakistan, in his remarks, highlighted the multi-faceted relationship between Pakistan and Turkey is flourishing in diverse fields.

“The growing Turkish involvement in socioeconomic development of Pakistan is a clear manifestation of the desire of the leadership on both sides to transform this strong political and cultural relationship into a robust economic partnership,” said Gilani.

The conference was followed by Business-to-Business (B2B) session.

Turkish and Pakistani companies explored
opportunities for joint ventures and trade in various sectors including construction, textile, services, energy, tourism, etc.

A number of orders were placed while the B2B forum proved a useful platform for establishing joint ventures and business collaboration in diverse sectors.

Meanwhile, successful Pakistani companies and entrepreneurs were honored in the 30th RCCI International Achievement Awards ceremony, held on the sidelines of the conference.

Fatih Metin, Deputy Minister for Economy of Turkey, graced the ceremony as the chief guest. Awards were presented to successful Pakistani companies and entrepreneurs for their outstanding performance.

“On the instructions of President Recep Tayyip Erdogan, Turkey is negotiating a comprehensive Free Trade Agreement (FTA) with Pakistan. Our target is to enhance bilateral trade to $5 billion in a short term,” said Metin, while addressing guests.


https://www.thenews.com.pk/print/223220-Turkish-firms-eye-more-investment-in-Pakistan
 
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Pakistan starts assembling Chinese passenger car

The first Chinese passenger car is now being produced in Pakistan, a market that is currently dominated by three Japanese carmakers.

Al-Haj Faw Motors (Private) Limited, a collaboration between Faw China and a commercial importer of heavy vehicles Al-Haj Motors, has started assembling Faw V2, a 1,300cc hatchback, at its assembly plant in Karachi.

The company was importing Completely Built Units (CBU) of V2 for the last two years to see market response. Now that it is satisfied with the response, it has decided to produce the car locally to compete with well-established Japanese brands.

“We want to become the export base of Faw for export of cars to Southeast Asia and African markets,” Al-Haj Faw Motors Managing Director Bilal Afridi said on Saturday at a ceremony organised at the company plant.

12-1502565543.jpg


The company initially targets to produce 300 units of V2 per month and then increase the production level to 500 units by the end of 2017. Currently, the company has over 600 workers and its annual capacity is 10,000 units (single shift) that will be increased to 15,000 units by 2020.

The company has recently invested Rs1.3 billion to improve the assembly plant, apart from its initial investment of Rs2.5 billion in the company.

The current price of Faw V2 is Rs1.069 million Company officials say they have only increased the price by Rs20,000 in over two years to make it an attractive product and compete well with the Japanese competitors.

Its Japanese competitor Pak Suzuki’s Swift, another hatchback with a 1,300cc engine, is available for Rs1.327 million (prices of its automatic variants go up to Rs1.511 million).

“I think they (Al-Haj Faw Motors) are maintaining a very good quality, something they should do because they have to compete with Japanese brands,” Pakistan Association of Automotive Parts and Accessories Manufacturers (Paapam) Chairman Mashood Ali Khan told The Express Tribune while inspecting a Faw V2 on the assembly line.

Company officials say they wanted to produce Chinese passenger cars and light commercial vehicles (LCVs) locally for a long time, but delay on the part of the government (from 2013 to 2016) in announcing a new auto policy interrupted the planned investments.

13-1502565550.jpg


Al-Haj Faw Motors has been assembling trucks since October 2011 while its plant is also capable of producing LCVs and passenger cars.

The Al-Haj Group has been present in Pakistan since 1960 when it started trading in different products like tyres, textiles and electronic goods.

The group, in May 2017, launched a separate company, Al-Haj Hyundai (Pvt) Limited, which will invest about Rs4 billion in producing Hyundai trucks and buses in Pakistan.

Chinese vehicles, led by Faw, are gradually getting a good response from the market, which has historically been dominated by Japanese companies.

Chinese brands have faced difficulty in the presence of Japanese and Korean companies that have enjoyed production facilities in Pakistan. However, the situation is going to change with the first locally produced Chinese car in the market.

Although Faw V2 has a distinct customer base, some analysts say it could take the market share of used cars that have caught the attention of Pakistanis for over a decade and a half. Pakistan currently imports over 45,000 used cars annually.

Analysts say growing middle class, better macroeconomic indicators and easily available car financing are some of the top reasons why car sales are continuously growing in Pakistan.

After over seven years of slowdown in the automobile industry, the country is once again producing over 250,000 units of LCVs, jeeps and cars annually.

https://tribune.com.pk/story/1480364/pakistan-starts-assembling-chinese-passenger-car/
 
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Army-Owned Firm Seeks to Double Share in Pakistan Dairy Market
By
Faseeh Mangi
,
Iain Marlow
, and
Chris Kay
August 14, 2017, 4:00 AM GMT+5
  • Fauji Foods aims to expand milk business to tap middle class
  • Royal FrieslandCampina, Nestle among competitors in sector
Pakistan’s Fauji Foods Ltd. wants to significantly expand its dairy business, ratcheting up competition among fast-moving consumer goods firms chasing the country’s growing middle class.

The firm, a subsidiary of the military-owned Fauji Foundation, one of the largest conglomerates in Pakistan, is looking to double its market share to 8 percent of the country’s packaged milk business this year, Chief Financial Officer Syed Aamir Ahsan said in an interview in Islamabad.

The Fauji group, which entered the dairy business by acquiring a majority stake in Noon Pakistan Ltd. about two years ago, will be up against Engro Foods Ltd., whose share dropped to 48 percent of the market in the 12 months ended November, according to the latest available data. In that time, Fauji Foods had already seized 19 percent of the country’s creamer segment, Ahsan said.

The Fauji group’s push is part of a wider effort by companies competing to tap a growing middle class in South Asia’s second-largest economy. Dutch firm Royal FrieslandCampina NV entered the country’s market by buying a 51 percent stake in Engro Foods in December for $450 million, one of the largest acquisitions in Pakistan’s consumer sector. Nestle Pakistan Ltd. is also a player.

‘More Competitive’
“Processed dairy has become much more competitive,” said Hasnain Malik, the Dubai-based head of equity research at Exotix Partners LLP. “There is no doubt that Fauji’s marketing push behind its brands -- Dostea and Nurpur Original -- has put pressure on the incumbents to respond.”

Dairy sector growth has slowed, however, in a nation where only 10 percent buy boxed milk, while most people buy raw milk and boil it before drinking.

“If you look at the dairy sector, again because of the poor policies of the government, it has actually shrunk and we are the only company in the dairy sector which is actually growing its market share,” said Ahsan. “Unfortunately in this government’s time, both the industry and the agri sector both have been badly affected, both were ignored.”

Fauji Foods took over Noon Pakistan’s facility in December 2015 and expanded it, investing about 7 billion rupees ($66 milllion). Capacity has gone from 100,000 litres per day to about 600,000 litres per day, he said.

The company’s shares have declined 3.6 percent compared with a 4 percent drop in the nation’s benchmark KSE100 Index. Engro Foods Ltd. has declined 38 percent this year.

Fertilizer Costs
Ahsan said the fertilizer business was attempting to cut costs in part by providing its own power. A Fauji-owned coal project began producing power in May, reducing the firm’s dependence on gas. Part of the power is also sold on to K-Electric Ltd, a power utility that provides power to more than 22 million people in Pakistan’s commercial hub of Karachi.

Read more: Amid Critical Blackouts, Pakistan Races to Fix Power Network

“Our profitability last year was around 1 billion,” Ahsan said. In 2017, the “first half was a loss and going forward we probably break even or have a little bit of profit.”

However, the government was “destroying” the fertilizer industry with its policies, Ahsan said, taxing farmers for fertilizer at 17 percent and at the same time providing a subsidy to reduce the cost of fertilizer.

Ahsan said government has yet to pay back as much as 3.8 billion rupees in subsidies to Fauji, which cost the industry billions of rupees, he said, part of an effort on behalf to gain revenues by taxing the industry up front and then choosing when to pay them back. “This is no way to govern.”

Pakistan’s Ministry of National Food Security and Research secretary, Muhammad Abid Javed, said the government had paid the industry“around 50 percent of total amount last year and some this year too.” The rest will be paid when the prime minister approves the disbursement, he said by phone.
https://www.bloomberg.com/news/arti...eeks-to-double-share-in-pakistan-dairy-market
 
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Pakistan-Indonesia trade volume to grow to $2.5b this year

Bilateral trade between Indonesia and Pakistan is expected to reach $2.5 billion this year, said Indonesian Consul General in Karachi Dempo Awang Yuddie.

Speaking at a ceremony held to celebrate the 72nd anniversary of the Republic of Indonesia on Thursday, he said that the two countries had tried to improve both political and economic ties since 2015.

Resultantly, a number of Pakistan’s parliamentarians, trade delegations and military personnel visited Indonesia recently to further enhance the bilateral relationship.

Trade between Pakistan and the Southeast Asian giant has been growing strongly for the last couple of years. The volume of bilateral trade grew from $700 million in 2010 to $2.3 billion in 2016, an increase of 229%.

Pakistan’s major exports to Indonesia include textiles and clothing, vegetables and fruits (mainly oranges) while its major import item from Indonesia is palm oil.

With over $2 billion worth of imports, the balance of trade is in favour of Indonesia while the two countries are trying to strike a balance so that it can become a win-win situation for both the trading partners.

Indonesia imports over $650 million worth of fruits and $550 million worth of vegetables annually. Now that Pakistan is regaining its share in Indonesia’s fruit imports, its exporters want to export more vegetables as well.

Speaking to the gathering, which included people from trade and business, diplomatic community and academia, Sindh Governor Mohammad Zubair said, “Pakistan wants to further strengthen its relationship with Indonesia, especially in trade and business.”

He remarked that the recent economic rise of Indonesia was also an example for Pakistan to follow, especially because the two countries shared many similarities in their demographics.

To improve trade relations, the two countries signed the Preferential Trade Agreement (PTA) on February 3, 2012, which came into effect in September 2013 after many rounds of negotiations.

Under the PTA, Indonesia offers market access for 232 tariff lines, of which 103 are zero-rated. Items in the preferential trade list include fresh fruits, cotton yarn, cotton fabrics, readymade garments, fans, sports goods, leather goods and other industrial products.

Zero-rated market access is offered to kinnow (mandarin) and oranges from Pakistan, providing a level playing field to this product in the Indonesian market.

Pakistan’s offer to Indonesia under the PTA covers 313 tariff lines that include items such as edible palm oil products, sugar confectionery, cocoa products, chemicals, kitchenware, rubber, wood, glassware and electronic products.

Pakistan has offered the same preferential treatment to edible palm oil products from Indonesia as provided to Malaysia under the Pakistan-Malaysia Free Trade Agreement (FTA).

https://tribune.com.pk/story/1485208/pakistan-indonesia-trade-volume-grow-2-5b-year/
 
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Pakistan, Indonesia opt for concession on 20 items

ISLAMABAD: Pakistan and Indonesia have agreed on concession for 20 different items during bilateral negotiation under Preferential Trade Agreement (PTA).

Both sides discussed 20 tariff lines and Indonesia agreed to give concession on major exports from Pakistan including rice, textile, ethanol, kinnow and mangoes during renegotiation on PTA, senior official of Ministry of Commerce told APP here on Sunday.

Concession on 20 tariff lines was major success of Pakistan and now Pakistani kinnow export to Indonesia will increase from 18 to 35 million tons and mangoes exports will increase to 10 million tons in a year, he said. The official said that before PTA, Indonesia granted only two months for export of Pakistan's kinnows and mangoes but now after renegotiation, Pakistan can export these fruits to Indonesia for the whole year and any time-limit was removed.

Replying to a question, he said that Pakistan and Indonesia have current annual trade volume of $170 million which is expected to increases after renegotiation on PTA between the two countries. Pakistan wants the same concessions from Indonesia which is getting from other countries like China, India, Sri Lanka and ASEAN countries, he said.

Both the countries agreed to expand PTA and go for a Free Trade Agreement between them, the official said. He said the Pakistan-Indonesia Preferential Trade Agreement (PTA) was signed in February 2012. Under the PTA, Indonesia allowed Pakistani kinnow to be shipped to Tanjung Port of Jakarta, he added.

He said that through these steps, Pakistani agricultural products will gain greater market access in Indonesia.

http://nation.com.pk/business/21-Aug-2017/pakistan-indonesia-opt-for-concession-on-20-items
 
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China offers high-yielding rice variety to boost Pakistan’s food security

CHANGSHA, China: Prof Yuan Longping, globally known as ‘Father of the Hybrid Rice’, has claimed to have developed Super-Hi Hybrid Rice seed, having more than double the yield potential of the paddy varieties currently under cultivation around the world.

“We have recently developed a very successful Super-Hi Hybrid Rice variety with a yield potential of 18 tons per hectare,” said Longping in a rare conversation with the visiting Pakistani journalists.

“This latest tier variety can help Pakistan in increasing rice yield very significantly and China will be happy to share newly developed very high-yielding rice variety with its friendly neighbor.”

The typical production of presently sown hybrid rice in China and Pakistan is around 7-8 tons per hectares. The Chinese expert observed that down the line, China wanted to help Pakistan in developing latest super-hi hybrid variety of rice for cultivation in local conditions.

“I think this new variety is the toughest ever in commercial large scale trials in terms of yield and this development and sharing its benefits have been a part of my lifelong wishes,” said he pointing to a rice plant sown in a pot in a corner of his room for demonstration purpose.

Prof Longping, 86, is a simple-looking man who’s pioneering research has ended famine and hunger from the world most populous country and other regions. Known as one of the world’s outstanding scientists in agricultural science, he worked hard for combating food shortages and hunger through his successful development of high-yielding rice varieties.

The United Nations (UN) Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization, the UN World Intellectual Property Organization, the UN Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO), as well as academic and non-governmental institutions in the US, Japan, Great Britain and other countries, conferred on him nine honorary titles and prizes.

He received the 2004 World Food Prize for his breakthrough achievement in developing the genetic materials and technologies essential for breeding high-yielding hybrid rice varieties. He continues his innovative scientific work as Director-General of the China National Hybrid Rice Research and Development Center in Changsha, Hunan Province, China.

Longping is widely acknowledged as the first person to discover how to achieve fast growth with greater yield and stress resistance. In 1964, he happened to find a natural hybrid rice plant that had obvious advantages over others. Greatly encouraged, he began to study the elements of this particular type. In 1973, in cooperation with others, he was able to cultivate a type of hybrid rice species which had great advantages.

It yielded 20 percent more per unit than that of common ones. And then he never looked back. His untiring efforts on the front of research continue. Now, about half of China’s rice production area is planted with hybrid rice. Worldwide, more than fifth of rice comes from rice species created by hybrid rice following Longping’s breakthrough discoveries. China has recently built a sprawling Hybrid Rice Museum to solely highlight his work. This facility includes extensive demonstration of his several rice varieties sown in fields.

While warmly welcoming ‘Pakistani friends’ at his institute, he said that one of his friends from Pakistan told him that hybrid rice varieties are performing well in their country. “The area of hybrid rice in Pakistan is about 200,000 hectares and per hectare yield of hybrid rice is as high as eight tons, which is very good,” said Longping. However, he said, the currently Pakistan needed to further increase the yield of the hybrid rice varieties.

“The new breakthrough in increasing yield of hybrid rice will help Pakistan augmenting its production,” he observed.

To a query about the role of hybrid rice role in ending hunger from the world, he said, China has opened the doors for all to take the advantages of the high-yielding hybrid rice varieties. “Our government has allowed us to spread the benefits of hybrid rice to other nations, especially developing countries,” said the Chinese scientist.

He added that it was his pleasure to help Pakistan in this regard. “I have heard many very good things about Pakistan. And I am very happy that hybrid rice varieties are performing very well in your country,” the expert said.

Replying to a question, Longping said, he did not face any obstacles in his quest for the hybrid rice seed. “Now our focus is on the development of disease-resistance and stress-tolerant super-high hybrid rice varieties,” the professor said replying to another query.

Referring to climate change and its impact on agriculture, he said, the planet is becoming warmer and warmer due to climate change. “We are working on heat-tolerant varieties, which can be sown in Pakistan where temperature is generally very high in summer. Hot weather at flowering stage is not good for hybrid rice and it should be lower than 38 degrees. Same is the case with growing problem of water scarcity,” Longping explained.

On Pakistan-China friendship, the ‘father of hybrid rice’ emphatically said there was a ‘very good friendship and relationship between China and Pakistan.’ “This friendship continues helping each other. Pakistan also is a very good country and China has a good friend in the neighborhood,” said the elderly agronomist. In the next breath, Longping wished Pakistan to become better and better and a leading nation.

Mansoor Ahmad, the leader of Pakistan media delegation, in his welcome note said that Prof Longping has done a great job for ending food scarcity from China as well as the whole world by introducing hybrid rice.

At the end, Fakher Malik, a veteran journalist, presented the renowned scientist a well-painted portrait of himself. Thanking, the Pakistani journalists for this gesture of goodwill, the Chinese scientist, said he would keep this portrait in his office as a reminder of this wonderful occasion.

https://www.thenews.com.pk/print/22...rice-variety-to-boost-Pakistans-food-security
 
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Pakistan to Target UAE as Major Poultry Exporter

PAKISTAN - Pakistan has decided to boost exports of poultry and poultry products to the United Arab Emirate (UAE).

Pakistan Today reports that the government's target is to become part of the top ten exporters to the UAE. The UAE is expected to import poultry products worth $ 1.1 billion in 2018 and initially, Pakistan would be targeting a share of $ 40 million.

An industry source said that it was decided at a meeting chaired by the Secretary of Commerce Younas Dagha at the capital on Friday. The meeting was attended by the Pakistan Poultry Association (PPA) and concerned officials of the other ministries.

The meeting was informed that there was a massive demand for halal poultry products in the Middle East markets. The local industry could not compete internationally due to a high ratio of taxes in the country. The PPA demanded reduction in import duties on machinery and equipment, sales tax and regulatory duty on poultry inputs.

The Commerce secretary assured that their demands would be looked into and resolved on an urgent basis. It was decided that a comparative chart of incentives given by other countries would be drawn to assess the negative impact on local industry and required tax relief.

The meeting was informed that 14 units were approved for exports to UAE, but due to price issues, exports worth only $0.88 million were materialised. Nearly 70 per cent of the exports were made only by a single local company (K&N) that has invested heavily in value added products over the last few years.

The PPA claimed that Pakistan could export up to $200 million per annum to UAE alone if the issues of competitiveness were resolved on an urgent basis.

Earlier this year, the UAE government had lifted the 8-year ban on the import of poultry and poultry products from Pakistan. The UAE has granted permission to import day-old chicks and hatching eggs from the companies which are certified for export from the relevant ministry and have attached health certificates.

Pakistan is a major meat exporter to the UAE and is branding itself as a hub for halal meat, including poultry, beef and veal. The UAE annually imports more than $700 million of poultry products, a market from which Pakistan was barred for eight years.

The removal of the ban has opened this market for Pakistan exporters, who have made commendable technological progress in the recent years. The ban was placed in 2005 and had caused a loss of half a billion dollars.

http://www.thepoultrysite.com/poultrynews/39073/pakistan-to-target-uae-as-major-poultry-exporter/
 
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Pakistan to increase poultry export to the UAE

Pakistan will boost exports of poultry products to the United Arab Emirate (UAE), a move through which the country is aiming to be placed in the top ten exporters to the UAE

As the UAE is expected to import poultry products worth US$1.1bn in 2018, Pakistan initially targets a share of US$40mn, according to Pakistan Today.

The decision was taken in a meeting chaired by Younas Dagha, secretary of commerce, and attended by the Pakistan Poultry Association (PPA) and concerned officials of the other ministries.


The source said that during the meeting, the PPA demanded to reduce import duties on machinery and equipment, sales tax and regulatory duty on poultry inputs to boost the export to the UAE market.

Dagha said that the PPA’s demands would be considered on an urgent basis. It was further decided in the meeting that a comparative chart of incentives given by other countries would be drawn to assess the negative impact on local industry and required tax relief.

Fourteen units were approved for exports to the UAE. Nearly 70 per cent of the exports were made by K&N, a local company, which has invested heavily in value added products over the last few years.

The PPA claimed that Pakistan could export up to US$200mn per annum to the UAE alone if the issues of competitiveness were resolved on an urgent basis, mentioned the source.

With the massive demand for halal poultry products in the Middle East markets, the local industry could not compete internationally due to a high ratio of taxes in the country. Therefore the Middle East governments are looking for international suppliers to meet the demand of poultry and poultry based products in the country.

In February 2017, the UAE lifted the eight years old ban on the import of poultry products from Pakistan. The UAE has allowed Pakistan to export day-old chicks and hatching eggs from the companies with attached health certificates from the ministry.

http://www.fareasternagriculture.co...akistan-to-increase-poultry-export-to-the-uae

 
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