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(REUTERS): Adviser to Prime Minister on Commerce Abdul Razak Dawood on Sunday said Pakistan would pursue individual trade deals with Saudi Arabia, the United Arab Emirates and Oman as talks with the Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) remain stalled.
Talking to international news agency Reuters, the PM’s aide asserted that Pakistan hoped bilateral negotiations for preferential trade deals with the three Gulf Arab states would start in the next 6-12 months.
“We feel it is far better to do individual deals at the moment rather than with the GCC as a bloc,” Razak Dawood added. A preferential trade deal typically gives certain products preferential access such as by reducing or removing tariffs.
He said the negotiations would cover limited number goods and would not be as comprehensive as a free trade agreement, though over time the deals, if secured, could be expanded. However, Razak did not mention which goods Pakistan would seek to include.
The GCC, which includes those three countries plus Qatar, Kuwait and Bahrain, started free trade talks with Pakistan in 2004. It has not implemented a free trade deal since 2015.
The UAE announced this month it would seek broad economic agreements covering trade and investments with eight countries, including India, Britain and Turkey but not Pakistan.
The PM’s aide is in Dubai to assess preparations for Pakistan’s participation at the six month Expo world fair being held there from next month.
He said Pakistan would highlight safety and diversity at Expo, which he hoped would lead to an increase in tourists and investments in the South Asian nation.
