ISLAMABAD, OCT 11 (DNA) – Spanish Ambassador Manuel Durán Giménez-Rico has said that Pakistan and Spain have been enjoying cordial relations and trade ties between the two countries are growing, but more efforts are needed to enhance bilateral trade volume in various sectors.

He said that Spain gives great importance to Pakistan for its trade ties, offering equal opportunity for this country to capture European trade markets.

The Spanish ambassador was talking to All Pakistan Business Forum President Syed Maaz Mahmood during a meeting held at the Embassy on Friday.

He said Pakistani businessmen should reach out to the outside world to show the potential of their products that would help in attracting more investment and promoting trade.

He said China-Pakistan Economic Corridor is a highly positive development as it has generated a lot of interest of the foreign investors.

He said both countries should focus on diversification to improve trade and identify other potential areas of mutual cooperation.

He said APBF should take a sector-specific business delegation to Spain and assured that his embassy would cooperate to make this visit successful.

He appreciated the role of APBF in boosting trade activities in the region and added that his embassy would be in touch with the Forum to increase the bilateral ties and bridge the gap between the business communities of the both countries. Business to Business meetings and exchange of trade delegates is very important to strengthen the trade ties between the two countries, he added.

All Pakistan Business Forum President Syed Maaz Mahmood congratulated him on his appointment in Pakistan and appreciated his predecessor ambassador Carlos Morales Sánchez, who has done a great job to make great interaction, taking several initiatives to strengthen people to people contacts of both countries.

He said that Pakistan’s major exports to Spain included few textiles products while Pakistan’s main imports from Spain consist of various kinds of machinery and parts, chemical materials and products, implying that bilateral trade is confined to few items. He stressed the need for focusing on various other areas to further promote bilateral trade.

They briefed the ambassador about the APBF initiatives and efforts for the business community and academia in view of increasing bilateral trade between Pakistan and other countries by conducting conferences, seminars, arranging delegations and B2B arrangements.=DNA

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