MCCI President Khawaja Jalaluddin Roomi in a statement issued here today said that although the chamber supports bilateral trade agreements like free-trade Agereements (FTA) and preferential Trade agreement (PTA)with different countries and regional blocs, it believes that these should be based on mutual benefit and must protect the country’s economic interests. Khawaja Jalaluddin Roomi said that the current FTAs and PTAs for swelling country’s import bill by 300 per cent in the last three years and putting an unbearable burden on foreign reserves.
The MCCI president warned that dwindling exports and widening trade deficit would not be sustainable for a longer period. Roomi urged for immediate corrective measures in order to save the economy from any debacle.
Due to the prevailing FTAs and PTAs, foreign goods have flooded local markets and simultaneously destroyed and shutdown many local industries producing similar products, he added.
JU Roomi urged the government to immediately renegotiate these agreements with the partner countries to bring in a balance and remove factors having adverse implications on the country’s trade and industry.
