KARACHI – The World Trade Organization (WTO) has postponed its meeting, which would discuss EU concessions to Pakistan, till the third week of next month as EU is yet to form a consensus in WTO. Pakistani exporters are anxiously waiting for the approval of European Union’s (EU) trade concession.
The WTO meeting, which was originally scheduled to be held on January 31, 2011, was postponed due to a lack of consensus over trade concession in the organisation, sources told Pakistan Today. Members of the organisation including India, Bangladesh, Srilanka, Peru have shown serious concerns over trade concessions through waiver of WTO rules.
In a statement submitted in the WTO, EU was still consulting members who have expressed systemic or economic concerns regarding its request for a waiver on trade preferences to Pakistan. The EU report, which was submitted in the Council for Trade in Goods, said that it would submit the report on results of these consultations at the next meeting, scheduled to be held on March, 21 2011.
Talking to Pakistan Today, experts said that EU and Pakistan have failed to convince the few counties for not opposing the temporary duty waiver on 75 products of Pakistan. This would help it recover from last summer’s floods. Though the government in Islamabad had claimed to convince the facility opposing countries most prominently India, through using the diplomatic channels, the EU proposals are in danger over strong opposition of some countries during the next meeting.
They said that delay in implementation of EU concession, which was expected by January 1 2011, has dampened the export momentum. A majority of the foreign buyers/importers, who have tuned to Pakistan to avail the facility, would return to other markets in Asia. However, sources in the ministry of commerce said that as the move was to be implemented by EU, the union would try to win over India before the next WTO meeting.
