ISLAMABAD: Pakistani companies are taking part in a five-day regional commodity fair, which has attracted enterprises from around 40 countries and regions, in its push to attract international trade and investment, state-run Associated Press of Pakistan (APP) reported this week.
The ‘15th Kashgar-Central and South Asia Commodity Fair’ kicked off in Kashgar, an ancient Silk Road town in northwest China’s Xinjiang region, on Friday.
The five-day fair, which will run till Aug. 19, has attracted 181 enterprises from 40 countries and regions including Pakistan, Kyrgyzstan, Kazakhstan and Ghana, as per the APP. Around 1,120 Chinese companies and 26 overseas business associations are also taking part in the event.
“This year’s fair has a 40,000-square-meter exhibition space that is divided into three key sections: investment cooperation, international trade and domestic trade,” APP reported on Saturday.
“The event focuses on business matchmaking in sectors such as biomedicine, cultural tourism, agriculture, cotton and textiles industries.”
The report said the regional fair was first held in 2005 and has to date seen the participation of 38,000 enterprises from 56 countries and regions, generating cumulative trade deals exceeding 480 billion yuan ($67.25 billion).
Pakistan’s participation in the fair takes place as the country pushes for sustainable economic growth, driven by foreign investment, bilateral trade and economic cooperation, and exports.
The South Asian country has signed trade deals worth billions of dollars with Saudi Arabia, UAE, Central Asian countries, China and other allies to bolster its fragile economy.
Pakistan formed the Special Investment Facilitation Council (SIFC), a hybrid government body comprising civilian and military officials, in June 2023 to fast-track decisions related to investment in key economic sectors.
The SIFC was formed to attract international investment in mining, agriculture, tourism, livestock, energy and other economic sectors as Pakistan came to the brink of a sovereign default in 2023.
