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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


Najib: Malaysia to consider FTA with US if TPPA falls through
PM says the proposed solution is to have the TPPA model incorporated into a bilateral agreement similar to a FTA in order to facilitate discussions on trade and investment issues.
Pakistan, Tunisia to sign PTA for improving bilateral trade
Pakistan and Tunisia are negotiating for a preferential trade agreement to improve bilateral trade between the two countries.
Pakistan, EFTA states agree to explore trade opportunities
Special note was made of suggestions to increase bilateral trade and investment between the two parties.
Pak-Thailand FTA: Pakistan wants duties eased on 100 products
A Free Trade Agreement between Pakistan and Thailand will be signed on January 15 for enhancing bilateral trade between the two countries, a top official of the Ministry of Commerce said.
Iran, Pakistan to finalize free trade deal by November
Pakistan and Iran have decided to strike a deal on trade despite slow or no progress regarding the implementation of a payment mechanism and the Iran-Pakistan gas pipeline project.
Pakistan, Vietnam to start FTA talks
Pakistan and Vietnam have agreed to share an initial list of products while kicking off negotiations on a free trade agreement.
China agrees to increase Pakistan exports
China has agreed to address the major concerns of Pakistan regarding preference erosion for Pakistani exports and meaningful market access during the 8th meeting of second phase of China-Pakistan Free Trade Agreement (FTA) held in Beijing.
Pakistan, China to hold 8th round of FTA talks next week
Pakistan and China will hold the eighth round of their Free Trade Agreement talks in Beijing, with both sides having failed to strike an agreement over the second phase of duty reductions.
FTAs, PTAs need to be revisited
The Federation of Pakistan Chambers of Commerce and Industry (FPCCI) recommended the government to revisit and negotiate anew the existing Free Trade Agreements and Preferential Trade Agreements
Pakistan, GCC plan to start third round of FTA talks
Pakistan is committed to finalising a free trade agreement (FTA) with the Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) in a bid to step up trade volumes between the two sides

    Links


  • Pakistan FTAs
    Webpage maintained by the Ministry of Commerce