China agrees to review Free Trade Agreement, boost yuan-based trade

The Chinese government has agreed to consider a request to amend the existing Free Trade Agreement (FTA), supply trade finance in yuans and provide loans to assist industry relocation to Pakistan. The requests were made during Pakistan’s Interim Commerce Minister Gohar Ejaz’s visit to China, where he is leading a 20-member group. Pakistan and China have come to a mutual understanding to revise the FTA. This revision aims to extend comparable preferences to Pakistani products, aligning them with the existing agreement between China and the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) countries, Mr Ejaz told Dawn on Monday. He said Pakistan will submit a priority list after consultation with the relevant stakeholders. “We will evolve the list in consultation with all stakeholders”, he said, adding that his Chinese counterpart has agreed to the requests.