Trade with Turkey hits $1.1 billion
The Indonesian envoy said that Pakistan could take advantage of the $3 trillion trade market of Asean, for which a comprehensive plan was needed. photo: file
The bilateral trade volume between Pakistan and Turkey has crossed the $1.1 billion mark after being stagnant for a decade, said Federation of Pakistan Chambers of Commerce and Industry (FPCCI) President Irfan Iqbal Sheikh.
While appreciating the Pakistan-Turkey Joint Business Council (PTJBC) of FPCCI in a statement on Friday for its efforts in promoting trade and economic cooperation between the two brotherly countries, he considered spike in trade landmark achievement.
Speaking on the occasion, FPCCI Senior Vice President Suleman Chawla called for facilitating the Economic Cooperation Organisation (ECO) countries and other sub-regional nations to benefit from the geo-economic dynamics.
He stressed upon taking advantage of land-based trade routes and supporting economies to alleviate poverty and unemployment. Businessman Amjad Rafi stated that Pakistan’s accession to UN’s TIR Convention has opened the doors for unprecedented and sustainable growth in trade with Turkey in particular and the ECO region in general.
Turkey’s Commercial Attaché Eyup Yildirim said that Istanbul had been investing in the technologies of the future such as electrical vehicles, renewable energy, avionics and drones, robotics, artificial intelligence, space technologies and agriculture. “Pakistan can benefit from these industries through cooperation, trade and joint ventures,” he added.
Pakistan Consul General in Istanbul Bilal Khan Pasha emphasised that the Strategic Economic Framework (SEF) and the forthcoming Free Trade Agreement (FTA) had the potential to make Turkey one of the major economic and trading partners of Pakistan.