| Bilateral Cooperation |
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| Wednesday,August 10,2005 Posted: 12:22 BJT(0422 GMT) PK2 |
Since early 1950, China and Pakistan have established trade relations and started trade transactions. In January 1963, the two countries signed the first trade agreement. In October 1982, China-Pakistan Joint Committee on Economic, Trade, Scientific and Technology Cooperation was set up. With the joint efforts of both sides, Sino-Pakistani economic and trade cooperation has seen good progress. Especially since the 1990s, their bilateral trade volume has witnessed fast growth. In 2004, the trade volume achieved a record high surpassing US$ 3 billion.
Statistical Chart for Sino-Pakistani Trade (unit: million US dollars)
Year | Total Trade Volume | China Exports | China Imports | 1995 | 1010.8 | 787.68 | 223.12 | 1996 | 963.75 | 621.48 | 342.27 | | 1997 | 1068 | 688 | 379 | | 1998 | 913 | 524 | 389 | | 1999 | 971 | 581 | 390 | | 2000 | 1163 | 670 | 493 | | 2001 | 1397 | 815 | 582 | | 2002 | 1800 | 1242 | 558 | | 2003 | 2430 | 1855 | 575 | | 2004 | 3061 | 2466 | 595 | | 2005.1-5 | 1360 | 1060 | 300 |
(Statistics from China General Administration of Customs)
In early April 2005, Premier of the State Council of China H.E. Mr. Wen Jiabao paid state visit to Pakistan. The two sides signed the "Treaty of Good-Neighborliness and Friendly Cooperation", which is a landmark for the future development of Pak-China relations.
Also, 20 agreements and MOUs were signed covering bilateral cooperation of economic and trade, agriculture, science and technology, education, etc.. The two sides agreed to start negotiations on Pak-China Free Trade Area and signed an agreement of "Early Harvest", the first one of this kind that China had with South Asian countries.
The 12th Session of China-Pakistan JEC Meeting was also held in Islamabad from April 3-6, 2005, in an extremely cordial and friendly atmosphere reflective of close friendly ties between the two countries. H.E. Mr. Bo Xilai, Minister of Commerce of China led the Chinese delegation while H.E. Dr. Salman Shah, Adviser to the Prime Minister on Finance, Revenue, Economic Affairs and Statistics, led the Pakistani delegation. Both sides reviewed and expressed satisfaction with the development of bilateral trade and economic cooperation since the 11th Session of the JEC. After detailed consultations and cordial exchange of views on various issues relating to bilateral trade and economic cooperation, both sides agreed to make joint efforts for further harnessing the potential for expanding trade, investment and joint ventures in various economic sectors.
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Bilateral Visits
