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July 10, 2001
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Money > Business Headlines > Report July 10, 2001 |
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Pak trade ministers not to accompany Musharraf; India Inc disappointedJosy Joseph in New Delhi India Inc is disappointed as the Pakistani General carefully selects an entourage that can authentically discuss Kashmir. And only Kashmir. With the announcement of the 19-member Pakistani delegation, minus the Pakistan ministers for finance and commerce, to accompany President General Pervez Musharraf, the neighbours have effectively "sealed all possibility of any great stride in business between the two sides during the present summit," a senior commerce ministry official told rediff.com. The Indian business community was hopeful of some talks on the sidelines of the Agra summit. "We didn't expect him to bring cricket officials, but we thought he would at least bring the finance and commerce ministers," the commerce ministry official said. With the Pakistani delegation's composition now clear, there is disappointment amongst industry associations that have been campaigning vigorously for discussions on improving bilateral trade. At FICCI, a delegation of Pakistani industrialists from the International Chamber of Commerce, Pakistani chapter, held discussions with their Indian counterparts on Monday in this regard. The two sides agreed that there was enough scope for improvement, and 'sky was the limit', FICCI economic advisor Anjan Roy said. He said that the present trade between the two countries would be only a little over Rs 7 billion, and it could "shoot up", if both the governments facilitate cross-border trade. Last year, exports to Pakistan from India were to the tune of Rs 4.05 billion, while Pakistan sold goods worth Rs 2.96 billion to India. There is also about Rs 1.5-2 billion worth unofficial trade, primarily because of exports of each other's goods through third countries. Pakistani goods that reach India include rice, fruits, textiles, cotton, spices etc. India sends to Pakistan items such as spices, oil, chemicals, dyes, organic and inorganic chemicals, etc. "FICCI had taken a delegation of Indian businessmen to Pakistan recently. The Pakistanis visited us in reciprocation," Roy said. He argued that both the sides realise that there is tremendous potential for improving trade between the two. The Confederation of Indian Industry has also been actively campaigning for improving trade ties between the two sides. CII in a statement said that there was "tremendous opportunity for Pakistan to source its present requirement of raw materials, intermediate goods and components from India in a cost-effective manner. Procuring these from India would not only enable Pakistan to expand their manufacturing base and facilitate cost-competitive production, but also augment scope for exporting semi-finished/finished goods to India and third countries." CII reiterated that India should be given the most favoured nation status by Pakistan. Pakistan already enjoys MFN status from India. Pakistan imports iron ore, drugs, pharmaceuticals, fine chemicals, and oil meals from Dubai, Hong Kong, etc at a much greater price than what India would offer, the commerce ministry official said. "Pakistan imports Indian machinery from Dubai, paying much more money," he said, arguing that it is the animosity that is preventing improvement in trade relations. CII says that Pakistan's trade with India is restricted to a specified list of 600 items. The confederation urged that the list should be abandoned or at least enlarged. "Electricity is a major item that India can get from Pakistan. Besides we could get cheap supply of fish, limestone, fertiliser, sugar and molasses, etc," the official said. CII feels that the bilateral trade between India and Pakistan has the potential to touch $5 billion by 2005 from the current $800 million. But for now, it seems that Kashmir will take precedence over all else. YOU MAY ALSO WANT TO READ:
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