Shipping rules formulated to boost foreign trade

KARACHI: The government has devised shipping procedures to help businesses in Pakistan expand into foreign markets through ecommerce, commerce adviser said on Friday.

Adviser to the Prime Minister on Commerce and Investment Razak Dawood said the government put in place a new business-to-consumer cross-border ecommerce procedure to facilitate exports by micro, small and medium enterprises through courier services.

Dawood said the exemption given to small ecommerce exporters from E-Form is a step in the right direction.

“The SBP has waived off the requirement of E-form for up to $5000 per consignment of ecommerce exports, regardless of the number of consignments. I express my gratitude to the Governor SBP for his valuable support,” he said in a tweeter message.

The State Bank of Pakistan (SBP) has relaxed a requirement for small entrepreneurs related to business-to-consumer ecommerce exports in a bid to promote local brands in the international markets and increase export remittances.

Up till now goods could only be exported after certification of electronic/ manual export (Form-E) by the authorised dealers and subsequent filing of goods declaration by the customers with the customs. The ‘E’ Form was required for each shipment with complete description of the goods being exported and had been designed keeping in view the export of large quantities of homogenous goods. Local brands couldn’t make inroads into foreign markets because of unavailable value chain supply. World’s renowned brands of textile are manufactured in the country. However, locals couldn’t market them their own.

Tech experts said the government now needs to set up fulfillment centres at International airports, ensure cost-effective fast delivery and build platforms like AliBaba and EBay to promote Pakistani brands.

Logistics plays a very important role in ecommerce. Ecommerce companies engaged in foreign trade have direct control over delivery and fulfillment to execute orders on time.

Authorities still need to develop digital payment infrastructure for foreign ecommerce as there are too much charges involved in transactions. The government initiated a project to collaborate between the country’s largest transactional clearing facilitator and a cross-border payment service provider to promote international digital payments.

The collaboration between National Institutional Facilitation Technologies and Checkout.com will provide payment services for domestic and foreign transactions, according to the officials.

Checkout.com is a global payment provider which offers reliable payments in more than 150 different currencies, in-country acquiring, robust fraud filters and reporting - all accessed through a single point of integration.