China mulls $1-billion investment in Pakistan's development projects

ISLAMABAD: China is planning to invest $1 billion in development projects in Pakistan, Beijing's envoy here has said, as the two all-weather allies seek to further boost bilateral ties.

Talking to a delegation at the Women's Chamber of Commerce and Industry (IWCCI) in Islamabad, China's Ambassador to Pakistan Yao Jing has said that the pace of development projects under the China-Pakistan Economic Corridor (CPEC) is satisfactory.

The CPEC, which connects Gwadar Port in Balochistan with China's Xinjiang province, is the flagship project of Chinese President Xi Jinping's ambitious Belt and Road Initiative (BRI).

Beijing has planned to invest $1 billion in development projects in Islamabad, he said.

Yao said that that the second phase of the China-Pakistan Free Trade Agreement (CPFTA) will be finalised in October after which 90 per cent of Pakistani exports including agricultural products and seafood will attract a zero per cent duty.

"Market access will increase Pakistan's exports by $500 million, which will reduce the disparity between bilateral trade," said Yao.

Pakistan and China are all-weather strategic cooperative partner and have always firmly supported each other on issues concerning each other's core interests.