Finance Minister Muhammad Aurangzeb said on Saturday that the government was not too concerned about the 29% additional tariffs imposed on his exports, but said a high -level delegation would soon visit Washington for trade negotiations.

“This is not something we are too concerned about, but we want to take up this question,” the finance minister said while talking about a news conference on recent economic development.

The Minister gave no details of the possible short -term influence on Pakistan’s estimated $ 5.5 billion annual exports to the United States.

The statement came on the heels of Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif’s decision to establish a political management committee and a technical working group to end political reaction to one -sided American action and take advantage of an “early mover” nation.

The United States is a very important strategic partner everywhere and the largest trading partner, the minister said.

He said the government will end the recommendations for the next few days and a high -level delegation will be sent to the United States for trade negotiations. The government is constructively engaged and we want our point of view to come across the table, he added.

The government ended its recommendations towards lowering the tasks of US goods and offering us more opportunities for US sellers to minimize the current $ 3 billion trade surplus.

President Donald Trump escaped unilateral tariffs against 60 nations with trade surplus, Pakistan stood at 33. Position with only a $ 3 billion profit due to higher textile exports.

China debt

While answering a question, the finance minister said the discussions with China were currently focused on refinancing the $ 1 billion commercial loan that Pakistan paid last month and issuing Panda bond.

Islamabad returned 1 billion Chinese commercial debt of one billion debt on the assumption that Beijing would reproduce it. The commercial loan discussions are at a very advanced stage, and the deal ends soon, he added.

The Minister had been asked to comment on whether there was any progress with Pakistan’s requests for a new $ 1.3 billion loan and re -planning of the guaranteed debt of $ 3.4 billion maturing during the IMF program period. Both of these questions are pending sometimes and there have been no tangible progress.

But the finance minister said the discussions have been productive. He also said that by the end of June, the country’s currency reserves will reach up to $ 13 billion, which is currently at six months low of $ 10.7 billion after making Chinese debt repayment.

IMF visits

The finance minister said that Pakistan and the IMF have active engagements and that there will be a few missions that will visit for discussions.

Pakistan has sought support from the IMF for improving governance, and the IMF’s Corruption and Governance Diagnosis Mission is here, the finance minister said.

Express Pakinomist has reported that the IMF sent another corruption and government diagnostic mission to Pakistan to hold in -depth engagements with over 30 departments and institutions, including the Supreme Court registrar in Pakistan (SCP) and Accountability Court.

The IMF mission meets with the SCP registrar to discuss the judicial effectiveness and accountability of the judges. There is also a separate meeting with the Justice Secretary Court in Islamabad to discuss the operation of these special courts, they added.

To a question, the Finance Minister said another IMF mission will visit Pakistan in May for the discussions of the next budget.

The Minister of Finance also mentioned that the provinces had taken steps for the first time to meet goals, and he expressed hope that the IMF’s Executive Board would soon approve the second tranch of $ 1 billion.

Opening economy

The finance minister said that Pakistan’s industries will now have to compete and the economy is opened. His comments came in light of Pakistan-IMF understanding of lowering trade-weighted average tariffs by 43% to 6% over a period of five years.

We cannot protect our industries without having a solar -decorated clause and any industry must export, the finance minister said. He said there should be exports in each sector that expresses the satisfaction that the car sector has begun exports in the last two months.

The Minister said there is an increase in currency reserves on the back of very strong transfers and expressed confidence that the transfers will affect the record post $ 36 billion this fiscal year.

“Exports also hold on to 7% growth,” he added.

The minister said the FBR income collection will increase by 32.5% this year, down from the budget target of 40% growth. But the minister said the overall goal of increasing the tax-to-BNP relationship to 10.6% at the end of this financial year will be achieved. With 32.5% growth, FBR’s target has been downward revised to RS12.3 trillion – a reduction of RS640 billion of the IMF.

The Minister of Finance stated that there has been a significant reduction in interest rates, and in his opinion there is room for further reduction.

He added that there are no difficulties in opening credit letter (LCS) or transferring profits from companies abroad. On the domestic front, inflation has significantly decreased. He said the reduction in the degree of inflation should be transferred to the public.

The Minister reported that RS870 billion This shows that people who buy power have risen, he added.