Pakistan, UK agree to deepen trade and economic cooperation

Islamabad, July 23:Pakistan and the United Kingdom have agreed to strengthen bilateral trade and economic cooperation by expanding business-to-business engagement and exploring the transformation of the existing Trade Dialogue into a more comprehensive and institutionalized economic framework.

The understanding was reached during a meeting between Federal Minister for Commerce Jam Kamal Khan and British High Commissioner to Pakistan Jane Marriott at the Ministry of Commerce. Secretary Commerce Jawad Paul and senior officials from both sides also participated in the discussions.

Speaking on the occasion, Jam Kamal Khan highlighted Pakistan’s ongoing economic reforms, including tariff rationalization, digitalization and regulatory improvements aimed at enhancing competitiveness and creating a more business-friendly environment. He said predictable tariff policies, improved access to finance and affordable industrial inputs would enable small and medium-sized enterprises, e-commerce businesses and export-oriented industries to expand into international markets.

The minister identified Africa and Central Asia as key emerging destinations for Pakistani exports and emphasized the need for greater collaboration in quality standards, certification, traceability, environmental compliance and value addition to improve export competitiveness.

British High Commissioner Jane Marriott appreciated Pakistan’s reform agenda and said the UK was considering upgrading the existing Trade Dialogue into a more structured mechanism with dedicated sectoral working groups and implementation timelines.

Both sides reaffirmed their commitment to maintaining close coordination and agreed to hold the next Pakistan–UK Trade Dialogue in Islamabad during the autumn of this year to further strengthen trade and investment relations.