Amid expectation that regional trade can provide opportunities to both the economies, Pakistan has called upon Uzbekistan to explore joint ventures in the textile sector. This invitation was given by Pakistan Commerce minister Khurram Dastgir Khan while he was chairing a meeting with a high level Uzbek delegation headed by Ulugbek Rozukulov, Deputy of the Prime Minister of Republic of Uzbekistan.

The minister welcomed the delegation and said that the visit would help promote trade and economic relations between the two countries. In order to realise the vision of regional connectivity for enhanced economic integration and to follow up on initiatives taken during the Prime Minister’s recent visits to central Asian countries, the Ministry of Commerce has chalked out a comprehensive plan for trade promotion exclusively focused on Central Asia, he said.

The trade volume between the two countries was $3.92 million in 2015-16 which increased from $2.98 million in 2014-15. Pakistan’s exports to Uzbekistan have witnessed marginal increase from $1.347 million in 2014-15 to $2.07 million in 2015-16 while imports from Uzbekistan have also slightly increased from $1.56 million to $1.843 million during the same period. The minister said that the bilateral trade between Pakistan and Uzbekistan was not reflective of the true potential. Uzbekistan is a country of about 32 million people with exports of $13.32 billion and imports of $12.5 billion.