Time to integrate |
PAKISTAN remains one of the least regionally integrated economies in Asia. The trade figures for the last fiscal year underline the extent of this disconnect. More than two-thirds of Pakistan’s $3.9bn in exports to nine regional countries went to China, even though total regional shipments declined by 11pc from a year earlier. Less than a third of these exports reached all the other neighbouring and regional markets combined. The imbalance is even more pronounced on the import side: of the nearly $20bn Pakistan imported from the region, almost 98pc originated in China. This lopsided trade relationship highlights not only........