bilaterals.org logo
bilaterals.org logo

Pakistan

The government of Pakistan is a keen pursuer of bilateral trade and investment agreements. It has a full FTA with Sri Lanka (2005), a PTA with Iran (2004) and Mauritius (2007), Early Harvest Schemes with China (2005) and Malaysia (2007), and is part of both ECOTA and SAFTA. It is in various stages of FTA talks, or preparations for talks, with Brunei, Indonesia, Jordan, Thailand, Malaysia, Morocco, Singapore, the Gulf Cooperation Council, Canada, Switzerland, Indonesia, Nepal, China, Turkey and Russia (among others). In July 2006, it signed a Framework Agreement on Trade with Mercosur.

Negotiations on a US-Pakistan bilateral investment treaty, as a step towards a US-Pakistan FTA, have been quite controversial and are unconcluded. After talks restarted in mid-2010, a draft US-Pakistan BIT was sent for approval to Pakistan’s Cabinet in April 2012. The Pakistani government has already signed almost 50 BITs with other countries. In 2011 Germany ratified a BIT with Pakistan.

On a wider scale, there is talk of possible Pakistani FTAs with Afghanistan, Algeria, the EU, Japan, Laos, Mexico, New Zealand, South Africa and Tunisia.

last update: May 2012
Photo: Asian Development Bank/CC BY-NC-ND 2.0


KP businessmen for Pak-China style FTA with Afghanistan
The Khhyber Pakhtunkhwa business community on Tuesday called for signing of a Pak-Afghan Free Trade Agreement (FTA) on the pattern of FTA inked with China.
Japan scouts more Asian players for TPP to cut China dependence
Japan will make a fresh attempt to expand the Trans-Pacific Partnership trade pact to include more Asian economies, such as Thailand, Taiwan, Indonesia and the Philippines, after the new coronavirus exposed the risks of supply chains overly dependent on China.
Pakistan to step up ties with Singapore
Pakistan is looking to step up its relations with Singapore in various fields with the possible signing of bilateral agreements and exchanging high level political visits between the two countries.
China Pakistan FTA-2: a new regional hub for cotton garments In the offing?
Pakistan’s government targets raising the country’s textile and clothing exports from USD 13.5 billion in 2018 to USD 25 billion by 2025.
Turkey seeks long-lasting FTA with Pakistan
Turkey wants a sustainable and long-lasting free trade agreement (FTA) with Pakistan to have a win-win situation for both the countries.
CPEC costs human life, resources in Balochistan: Activists at UN
Baloch political activists have alleged that the people in Balochistan are paying a heavy price for the multi-billion dollar China-Pakistan Economic Corridor (CPEC).
Efforts under way to get Reko Diq case penalty cancelled: AG Khalid Jawed Khan
Attorney General Khalid Jawed Khan has said that Pakistan’s foremost effort in the Reko Diq mining case is to secure annulment of the $5.9 billion penalty.
Pakistan seeks direct US market access
Pakistan said said US should convene meeting of Trade and Investment Framework Agreement (TIFA) to move forward for result oriented progress.
FTAs not benefitting Pakistan: FEBR
As none of the Free Trade Agreement has boosted exports from the country so far, the FEBR has recommended the government to review its trade and export policies with a keen focus on value-addition for a sustainable economic trajectory.
Pakistan, Turkey FTA talks in April, says Razak Dawood
The ice between Pakistan and Turkey on Free Trade Agreement has thawed and to this effect the commerce ministry will highlight the potential sectors on FTA in March and begin negotiating on the FTA in Ankara in April.

    Links


  • Pakistan FTAs
    Webpage maintained by the Ministry of Commerce