Local auto industry vital for economic growth: Iftikhar Malik

LAHORE, Nov 10 (APP): SAARC Chamber of Commerce and Industry former president Iftikhar Ali Malik urged the government to further strengthen the domestic automobile industry by encouraging local manufacturing of auto parts and reducing reliance on imports.
In a statement on Tuesday, he said promoting locally manufactured components would help conserve valuable foreign exchange, create employment opportunities and strengthen the country’s industrial base.
He said locally assembled Japanese vehicles contained 50 to 65 per cent locally manufactured parts, compared with 20 to 25 per cent in Korean vehicles and zero to five per cent in Chinese vehicles, highlighting the potential for expanding local production. He said Pakistan’s 1,200 engineering enterprises directly employed around 300,000 workers, while another 1.5 million people were indirectly associated with the industry.
Iftikhar Ali Malik stressed the need for a supportive tariff policy to encourage investment in domestic manufacturing, adding that regional countries, including India, Thailand and Indonesia, had adopted higher tariffs on imported completely built vehicles to support their local industries.
He said a stronger local auto parts industry would help reduce the import bill, promote industrial growth and contribute to economic self-reliance. He urged the government to encourage domestic production through appropriate measures and incentives.