BEIJING, Aug 12 (APP): The 2nd Pakistan-China Business Conference will be held in Beijing on September 4 to further boost trade and investment ties between enterprises from both countries, Pakistan’s Ambassador to China, Khalil Hashmi announced.
The event will coincide with Prime Minister Shahbaz Sharif’s visit to China for the Shanghai Cooperation Organization (SCO) Summit in Tianjin later this month.
The Pakistan Embassy in Beijing, in collaboration with the Special Investment Facilitation Council (SIFC), Board of Investment (BOI), various ministries, and provincial departments, has made enormous efforts ahead of the conference to respond to Chinese investors’ basic questions and offer investment opportunities in Pakistan.
“We are completing the list of Pakistani and Chinese companies participating in the conference. Matchmaking sessions are being scheduled in advance to allow participants to engage beforehand, ensuring more productive outcomes than meeting for the first time on the event day,” he said in an interview.
The Chinese companies will be briefed on government incentives, including land acquisition, tax breaks, customs duty exemptions, wage structures, and energy provision. Pakistani participants will receive sector-specific guides on opportunities in China and strategies to maximize them.
Ambassador Hashmi said that spectacular economic, technological progress has now turned China into the New Land of Opportunities for any one. It is up to Pakistan to take advantage of this.
He emphasized the need for a targeted approach to increase Pakistan’s production capacity and exports to China.
He revealed that 21 priority sectors—ranging from manufacturing, petrochemicals, minerals, and pharmaceuticals to textiles, leather, and medical equipment—have been identified for enhanced cooperation.
The first Pakistan-China Business Conference held in Shenzhen last year during the Prime Minister’s visit, attracted 105 Pakistani and 250 Chinese companies. In a single day, over 1,000 B2B meetings took place, leading to the signing of 30 MOUs, of which 17 have already materialized into contracts worth more than US$ 100 million.
Between October last year and January this year, matchmaking meetings focused on textiles, footwear, leather, plastics, and food products resulted in 45 MOUs worth over US$ 600 million from 850 B2B engagements.
Additionally, a food and agriculture expo in Karachi and a health and minerals expo in Lahore saw record Chinese participation. In Karachi, contracts worth US$ 55 million and MOUs worth US$ 100 million were signed, while in Lahore, deals totaled US$ 135 million in contracts and US$ 300 million in MOUs.
“In total, agreements and contracts signed over the past year have exceeded US$ 1.2 billion,” Ambassador Hashmi noted.
APP/asg