Turkey aims for $5 billion trade in the next two years
Published on: October 18, 2023.
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Pakistan and Turkiye Eye $5 Billion Bilateral Trade in Next Two Years
Turkiye’s Ambassador to Pakistan, Dr. Mehmet Pacaci, has expressed optimism that Pakistan and Turkiye can significantly increase their bilateral trade to reach $5 billion within the next one to two years. In the long term, he anticipates that the bilateral trade could even reach $20-25 billion.
To achieve these goals, both countries are encouraged to leverage mutually shared multilateral platforms such as the Organisation of Islamic Cooperation (OIC) and Economic Cooperation Organisation (ECO). In addition, the focus will be on introducing two visa categories, namely tourist visa and business tourism visa, to facilitate easier travel between the two nations.
Dr. Pacaci emphasized the importance of people-to-people linkages in the context of Turkiye and Pakistan. With a population of approximately 250 million, Pakistan is deemed economically significant for Turkiye. The ambassador also highlighted the opportunities presented by Pakistan’s inclusion into the Transports Internationaux Routiers (TIR) convention for land-based cargo and the Trade in Goods Agreement (TGA) signed between the two countries.
Experts suggest that to bridge the trade deficit with Turkiye, Pakistan should consider exporting IT services. This sector includes programming, designing, software development, and robotic machine learning, among others. The IT industry has the potential to swiftly establish a foothold in the Turkiye markets compared to other industries.
Presently, Pakistan’s exports to Turkiye include textiles, leather goods, sports goods, surgical instruments, agricultural products, and rice. On the other hand, Pakistan imports processed food, engineering goods, home appliances, confectionery, beverages, toys, and defense products from Turkiye.
To unlock the true potential of the bilateral trade, Pakistani officials stress the need to explore new avenues for exports and prioritize industrial collaborations and technology transfer. The current bilateral trade of $1.3 billion falls significantly short of the trade’s actual potential.
The Pakistan-Turkiye Joint Business Council Chairman, Amjad Rafi, highlights the importance of implementing a practical and efficient currency swap agreement between both countries to overcome the lack of commercial banking channels and other issues related to corresponding banks.
Furthermore, the use of land-based cargo under the TIR convention offers a promising solution for faster transportation of goods. It takes less than two weeks for land-based cargo to reach Istanbul, which is approximately 30% of the time required for sea-based cargo. Not only is it time-efficient, but it also significantly reduces transportation costs.
With concerted efforts from both countries, Pakistan and Turkiye are poised to strengthen their economic ties and create new opportunities for trade. The potential benefits are extensive, and both nations are determined to harness them to boost their respective economies.
Source: The Express Tribune
