Pakistan minister hopeful of enhanced trade ties with Iran

“State Bank of Pakistan (SBP) has assured us that formal banking channel will be open soon. And we will have Iran as a good trading partner and market in our neighborhood,” the minister told ‘The News’ in an interview.

“We can trade with Iran with the already existing roads, or rail route and even through air cargo. But the major hurdle till this date was a formal banking channel, and with this opening we will have a good market to build our trade relations,” he added.

The State Bank of Pakistan (SBP) last year had signed a Banking and Payment Arrangement (BPA) with Iran’s central bank, Bank Markazi Jomhouri Islami Iran (BMJII) in Tehran.

The leaders of Iran and Pakistan have already agreed to take the bilateral trade volume upto $ 5 billion in coming years.

Meanwhile Commercial attaché of Iran in Pakistan Morad Ne'mati Zargaran has said that Iran's exports to Pakistan have increased by around 16 percent during last Iranian fiscal year (ended March 20) compared to the previous fiscal year.

He said that trade between Iran and Pakistan is improving and overall bilateral trade volume stands at $ 1.336 billion.
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