Federal Minister of Finance, Muhammad Aurangzeb, said on Tuesday that Pakistan and the United States advanced efforts to improve their strategic partnership and stressed that the two nations align with key issues and are progressing in the right direction.
Speaking during an event in Islamabad, the minister described his recent dialogue with the American secretary to trade Howard Lutnick as encouraging and turned forward.
Aurangzeb has reaffirmed the government’s commitment to continue reform initiatives in areas such as taxation, energy and trade, according to a report on the State Radio Pakistan website.
He noted that recent tariff adjustments aim to promote a more competitive economic environment.
Commenting on pension reforms, the Minister of Finance said that the introduction of the retirement regime for a defined contribution represents a balanced approach which benefits both the State and the employees of the Government.
He added that pensions for retired staff had been increased by seven percent to reflect current inflation trends. In addition, a proposal was made to impose a tax of five percent on pensions exceeding ten million rupees, while ensuring that retirees with lower and average income are not affected.
During a previous virtual meeting with the Secretary of Commerce Lutnick, the two parties agreed to advance negotiations on reciprocal tariff provisions.
Discussions focused on increasing trade and investment links and strengthening economic collaboration based on mutual interest.
The two parties also agreed to continue the talks at the technical level in the coming days, following a jointly agreed roadmap aimed at finalizing a trade agreement.
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Previously, the federal government has decided to initiate talks with the Trump administration concerning the 29% tariff imposed on Pakistani products by the United States, Express News reported.
Sources have indicated that the government has started to formulate a strategy to combat the impact of the additional price and to explore the possibility of reducing it thanks to discussions with the American authorities.
In this regard, a crucial meeting took place at the Ministry of Commerce under the presidency of the Federal Minister of Commerce, Jam Kamal Khan.
Reunion, which included more than fifty exporters, importers and key stakeholders, focused on the potential effects of the 29%tariff, in particular on the textile exports of Pakistan.
The session has analyzed how new American prices could have a negative impact on the textile sector of Pakistan, which constitutes most of the country’s exports to the United States.
Pakistan average exports to the United States exceed $ 5.5 billion per year, with textiles representing a significant part.
In addition, Senator Aurangzeb reiterated Pakistan’s unshakable commitment to promoting regional economic cooperation to the finance ministers of the Shanghai Cooperation Organization (SCO) and the Governors of Central Banks in Beijing on Tuesday.
The virtual address has highlighted Pakistan’s continuous dedication to advance economic stability, prosperity and development in the SCO framework.
Senator Aurangzeb has reaffirmed the active role of Pakistan within the OCS, stressing its importance as a vital platform to improve economic ties between the Member States.
Aurangzeb also expressed its gratitude to China for welcoming the high -level gathering and underlined Pakistan’s support for proposals aimed at stimulating joint projects, technology transfer and capacity building programs.
