During a press conference held in Washington, Ned Price, a spokesperson for the US State Department, emphasized the importance of the strong trade relationship between the United States and Pakistan in aiding the country’s recovery from the catastrophic floods of last year.
Price stated that the recent Trade and Investment Framework Agreement (TIFA) Council ministerial meeting, led by US Trade Representative Ambassador Tai, demonstrated America’s dedication to enhancing economic and commercial connections with Pakistan.
He stated, “We believe that a robust trade relationship between the United States and Pakistan is more important than ever to bolster Pakistan’s economic stability as it recovers from devastating floods, while at the same time also providing an opportunity to Americans and to American businesses in this country, exposing them to new markets; Pakistani markets in this case”.
US ties vital for Pakistan’s economic stability
The bilateral trade between the US and Pakistan has resulted in mutually beneficial outcomes for the industries and consumers in Pakistan. He further added, “We have long been Pakistan’s largest export market, with potential for even further growth.”
According to the State Department representative, the United States sees promising opportunities for boosting trade with Pakistan in various sectors such as energy, agricultural equipment and products, franchising, retail trade, and information and communications technology products and services.
The spokesman added that the US has been a major investor in Pakistan over the past 20 years, and in the past 12 months alone, American investments in the country have risen by approximately 50 percent.
US investment in Pakistan has reached its highest point in more than ten years. Since 2019, US companies have announced investment plans totaling more than $1.5bn in the country. Additionally, US corporations and their local partners are responsible for providing employment to a significant portion of the Pakistani workforce. Thus roughly 80 US firms are directly employing over 120,000 individuals.
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