Economic framework with Turkey hailed

KARACHI: The Federation of Pakistan Chambers of Commerce and Industry (FPCCI) has appreciated the efforts of the governments of Pakistan and Turkey to enter into Strategic Economic Framework (SEF) for enhancement of bilateral relations in trade, tourism, healthcare, hospitality, industry, education, housing, agriculture, aviation and banking, a statement said on Monday.

FPCCI President Daroo Khan Achakzai said that the main purpose of SEF is to enhance bilateral trade five-folds from the existing $800 million (approximately), and for achieving this goal, it is expected that both the governments may sign free trade agreement (FTA) during the current year.

Pakistan and Turkey are the members of ECO, D-8, CACCI and OIC and the existing trade volume doesn’t reflect the significant bilateral relations, he said.

He urged the government of Pakistan to resolve / negotiate all anti-dumping barriers imposed by Turkey on Pakistani textiles and other items before signing the FTA.

These antidumping duty and safeguard measures reduced Pakistan’s export to Turkey to $327 million from $850 million in 2011. Textile and rice are the main exportable items of Pakistan, facing high tariff rates in Turkey, he said, adding that the imposition of extra duty on Pakistan’s textile in terms of safeguard and antidumping makes products uncompetitive in Turkey.

He suggested similar duty structure for Pakistan’s textile products, which Turkey is offering to Egypt and Jordan under the FTA.