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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


Pakistan, Qatar to sign trade pacts soon
Pakistan and Qatar have agreed in principle on a preferential trade agreement (PTA) and a free trade agreement (FTA) to enhance bilateral trade. The agreements will soon be signed after necessary formalities.
Pak-China FTA (2nd phase) comes into force today
Pakistan and China trade will get a big a boost with the implementation of second phase of their free trade agreement from December 1.
Turkish companies keen to invest in SEZs
Waheed said that Pakistan and Turkey have been negotiating a free trade agreement and many rounds of talks have already been held for this purpose.
Pak-China FTA to become effective from Dec
China has approved the premature activation of the free trade agreement with Pakistan. This is the second phase of FTA with china that was signed in Beijing in April 2019.
Australia uninterested in a free trade agreement with Pakistan
Australia has refused to offer preferential market access to Pakistan on the grounds that the country has a very limited basket of tradable goods and services.
Senate body opposes setting up CPEC authority through ordinance
The Senate Special CPEC has opposed setting up CPEC Authority through Presidential Ordinance, arguing that they would not accept any proposal without being presented to Parliament for approval.
PTI govt set to launch 13 mega agri-projects
The government is set to launch 13 mega projects across the country in an effort to give a fresh boost to the agriculture sector with assistance from China.
Secretary commerce emphases for FTA with Australia
Pakistan Secretary Commerce, Sardar Ahmad Nawaz Sukhera emphasized on the need of positive consideration from Australian side regarding Pakistan’s request for preferential treatment through Preferential or Free Trade agreement (FTA).
‘Pakistan China Free Trade Agreement (FTA): where we are and where we are going?’
The recently signed second phase of FTA between China and Pakistan yields a splendid opportunity for the two nations.
Pakistan seeks convening of TIFA meeting
Pakistan will seek engagement with the United States in the economic and trade arena, while emphasizing the need for early convening of the next round of Trade and Investment Framework Agreement (TIFA).

    Links


  • Pakistan FTAs
    Webpage maintained by the Ministry of Commerce