Reciprocal tariffs: Govt forms 2 panels to strategise engagement with US

ISLAMABAD: The Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif government has formed two high-powered committees, including one led by Finance Minister Mohammad Aurangzeb, to develop a comprehensive roadmap for engaging with the United States on the issue of reciprocal tariffs.

According to official notification, in pursuance of the directives of the Prime Minister of Pakistan regarding formation of the Steering Committee for in-depth analysis and policy responses to recently announced US Reciprocal Tariffs vide PMO’s U.O. No. 7(51)/DS(EA-III)/2025, the following Steering Committee is hereby notified with immediate effect including:

Federal Minister for Finance (Convener), Federal Minister for Commerce (Member), Federal Minister for Petroleum (Member), SAPM on Industries (Member), Chairman Federal Board of Revenue (Member), Secretary Ministry of Foreign Affairs (Member), Rizwan Saeed Sheikh, Ambassador-USA (Member), Ali Sarfaraz Hussain, PR to WTO (Member), Dr Manzoor Ahmad, former PR to WTO, (Member), Dr Ijaz Nabi (Member), Minister Trade and Investment, Washington DC (Member), And Secretary Commerce (Secretary).

The terms of reference (ToRs) of the steering committee are as under:

Guide and supervise the working group on US reciprocal tariffs.

Deliberate and approve the recommendations, presented by the working group. Negotiate with the US as a major trade partner on as-and-when-required basis.

Brief prime minister on regular basis regarding related developments/initiatives.

Any other tasks as deemed appropriate by the committee chief. The committee may co-opt any additional members on need basis.

The Ministry of Commerce Division would provide the secretariat support.

The government has constituted another committee. The notification says that in pursuance of the directives of the prime minister of Pakistan regarding formation of a working group for in-depth analysis and policy responses to recently announced US reciprocal tariffs vide PMO’s U.0. No. 7(51)IDS(EA-III)/2025, the following working group is hereby notified with immediate effect:

{C}i. {C}Secretary Ministry of Commerce (Convener),

{C}ii. {C}Secretary Ministry of National Food Security & Research (Member), {C}iii. {C}Secretary Ministry of IT & Telecommunication (Member),{C}iv. {C}Azmat Mehmood, former minister (T&I), Washington DC (Member), {C}v. {C}Ali Sarfaraz Hussain, PR to WTO (Member), {C}vi. {C}Inuan Mohmand, DG R&A FBR (Member), {C}vii. {C}Musadaq Zulqanain, chairman Interloop (Member), {C}viii. {C}Bashir All Mohammad, Gul Ahmad (Member), {C}ix. {C}Dr Khurram Tariq, Kay and Emms (Member), {C}x. {C}Shahid Soorty, Soorty Textiles (Member), {C}xi. {C}Member Customs Policy FBR (Member), {C}xii. {C}Additional Secretary Americas, Foreign Office (Member),

{C}xiii. {C}Hanif Channa, Minister Trade & Investment, Washington DC (Member),

{C}xiv. {C}CEO Pakistan Business Council (Member),

{C}xv. {C}Fawad Anwar, chairman Pakistan Textile Council (Member),

{C}xvi. {C}Dr Mohammad Saeed, ITC (Member),

{C}xvii. {C} Manzoor Ahmed, former PR to WTO (Member), {C}xviii. {C}Musharraf Zaidi (Member),

{C}xix. {C}Joint Secretary Tariffs, Ministry of Commerce (Secretary).

The ToRs of the working group are as under:

{C}i. {C}Analyse US reciprocal tariffs in terms of their applicability on Pakistan exports to US on each affected tariff line.

{C}ii. {C}Study implications of these tariffs on Pakistan and the world in general.

{C}iii. {C}Propose measures for tariff rationalisation for confidence building measures for subsequent trade negotiations.

{C}iv. {C}Propose initiatives to mitigate impact of higher US tariffs for Pakistani exports.

{C}v. {C}Analyse opportunities arising out of changes in global trade dynamics and propose strategies for gaining early mover advantage.

{C}vi. {C}Measures to forestall possibility of dumping by trading partners in view of trade contraction elsewhere.

{C}vii. {C}Propose specific recommendations to the steering committee for decisions at appropriate levels.

Any other issue ancillary to above including additional tasks by the steering committee.