SBP data shows Pak-Saudi trade only $3.4b, regrets SAARC Chamber
SAARC Chamber of Commerce and Industry (SCCI) Senior Vice President Iftikhar Ali Malik while quoting data of the State Bank of Pakistan said that despite holding great potential, bilateral trade between Pakistan and Saudi Arabia is only $3.4 billion and largely in favor of Saudi Arabia. He said that Saudi Crown Prince Muhammad bin Salman's visit to Pakistan was a milestone in the history of Pak-Saudi relations, which would open new vistas of opportunities, especially in economic field.
He said Saudi Crown Prince Muhammad bin Salman was a great leader of Islamic world and his economic reforms inside Saudi Arabia have brought positive impacts.
He said the good sign was that Pakistan under dynamic leadership of Prime Minister Imran Khan was also introducing economic structural reforms to revive the economy of the country.
He said Pak-Saudi relations were historical and based on mutual interest and trust and the Saudi government always extended helping hand towards Pakistan at the time of crisis whether it was a grant of US$10 million during the 2005 earthquake, $170 million during the 2010/11 floods, and a $1.5 billion grant when Pakistan faced an economic crisis in 2014.
He said the good thing was that Saudi Arabia was not giving loan but injecting investment around $2 billion to $3 billion in order to stabilize its foreign reserves position, currency and external balance sheet and about $9 billion into different projects.
He added that it would be in good interests of Pakistan if Saudi Arabia be agreed to supply oil at concessionary rates which would mitigate pressure on the import bill to a large extent during the Crown Prince visit.
During the last fiscal year, 2017-18, the country's imports of petroleum stood at $13.27 billion, imported from different countries, including Saudi Arabia, he said adding, "If Pakistan gets the oil at a deferred payment or at relaxed conditions the issue of the country's cash will be resolved," he added.
Malik suggested to explore avenues for exports to Saudi Arabia by ending tariff and non-tariff barriers that have decreased the trade of goods and services. "Despite holding great potential, bilateral trade between Pakistan and Saudi Arabia is only $3.4 billion and largely in favor of Saudi Arabia. Pakistan imported $3.1 billion worth of goods from the Kingdom during the fiscal year 2017-18, while exports stood at $316.7 million," he said while quoting data of the State Bank of Pakistan.
He said at this juncture, we are able to build on the historic relationship by encouraging investors on both sides to make use of the business and cooperation opportunities. He also proposed having a dialogue with the business community in both the countries and make room for having more agreements to launch new initiatives. He said Pakistan should try to win Saudi contracts for IT services to earn foreign exchange and explore new potential in agriculture to seek Saudi investment through joint ventures.
"This area has potential to grow fast and create export surplus. Saudis investors can be lured for modern corporate farming in Pakistan to earn substan- tial profits," he added.
Iftikhar Malik said Saudi Arabia's investment in the mega-project of the China-Pakistan Economic Corridor (CPEC) will be beneficial for both the countries.
He said it would also connect those parts of the world which had been no or less connectivity.
"The economic corridor will not only provide China with cheaper access to Africa and the Middle East but will also earn Pakistan billions of dollars for providing transit facilities to the world's second-largest economy," he concluded.
Saudi Arabian investors are interested in investment and joint ventures in various sectors of Pakistan’s economy. Steel manufacturing and food processing are potential areas for joint ventures between the two countries. These views were expressed by Ambassador of Saudi Arabia to Pakistan Abdullah bin Marzouk Al-Zahrani. He was talking to a delegation of Islamabad Chamber of Commerce and Industry (ICCI) led by its President Atif Ikram Sheikh who called on him to discuss ways and means for further enhancing bilateral trade between the two brotherly countries.
Sheikh Pervez Ahmed, Senior Vice President and Sheikh Abdul Waheed, Vice President Islamabad Chamber of Commerce and Industry, Iftikhar and Tanveer Afsar Malik were members of the delegation. The Saudi Envoy stressed that both countries should organize single country exhibitions and encourage frequent exchange of trade delegations to explore all untapped areas of mutual collaboration. Saudi Arabia considered Pakistan an important trading partner and wanted to further enhance import of many products from Pakistan.