KARACHI: A top official of the Federation of Pakistan Chambers of Commerce and Industry (FPCCI) has said the federation would consider suspending trade with India if the situation did not improve soon.
“Pakistan had no compulsions of any sort to continue business and trade relations with India under the current hostile conditions,” said FPCCI president Abdul Rauf Alam, adding, “The entire Pakistani business community was united to take any decision and given the tense situation in the region, it was not possible to continue trade relations with India.”
Alam pointed out the role of the SAARC Chamber of Commerce and Industry and said that it left them with no choice but to promote trade relations with ECO and D-8 countries.
“The Kalabagh dam and the China-Pakistan Economic Corridor (CPEC) were also facing controversies and losing such opportunities could be damaging for the country. CPEC was a game-changer, but there was little awareness among the business community about the project,” the federation president said.
He also advised the community to work in unison and avoid politics of accusations in order to improve the image of the apex body of trade and industry (FPCCI).
Abdul Rauf Alam was of the opinion that without making payments of outstanding sales tax refunds to exporters, the country would not progress and falling exports would also not improve.