ISLAMABAD, SEPT 12 (DNA) – Federal Minister for Commerce Mohammad Pervaiz Malik in a meeting with US Ambassador to Pakistan David Hale who called on the minister said that Pakistan was to host a Business Opportunities Conference which would prove to be a better effort at improving trade ties with the US.

Malik said that Pakistan and the US have cordial trade relations and that trade between Pakistan and US stood at 6 billion USD during the last FY 2016-17.

He said that the trade relations between the two countries are governed by Trade and Investment Framework Agreement (TIFA) which was signed in 2003 and covers Pak-US GSP Programme and Business Opportunities Conference (BOC).

BOC is a government to government arrangement and Pakistan is preparing to host fifth BOC.

Pervaiz Malik also said that Pakistan is also looking forward to further improve bilateral trade with Afghanistan and facilitate the transit trade.

“Pakistan is looking forward to holding the 7th APTTCA meeting which was scheduled on September 10, 2017 but was unilaterally postponed by the Afghan side,” added the minister.

He said that the US should extend cooperation to Pakistan in different sectors particularly agriculture.

David Hale said that Pakistan is lucrative for investment and that the US businessmen are interested in investing in Pakistan. He further said that GSP is the key and Pakistan is making good use of it.

Hale said that Business Opportunities Conference will help Pakistan in building awareness of US businesses and will result in sector wise discussion and cooperation.

Earlier, the European Union (EU) Ambassador to Pakistan Jean Francois Cautain called on Federal Minister for Commerce Mohammad Pervaiz Malik. Matters of mutual interest were discussed in the meeting.=DNA

===========