New marketing approaches to enhance China-Pakistan trade: officials
New marketing approaches such as cross-border e-commerce and e-commerce livestreaming are expected to be adopted by Pakistani enterprises to promote trade between China and Pakistan and enhance the recognition of Pakistani brands in Chinese consumer markets, according to representatives at the 2021 China and Pakistan Trade Forum.
Zhou Xiaoyan, vice president of China Council for International Investment Promotion, speaks at the 2021 China and Pakistan Trade Forum on Thursday. Photo: Belt and Road Portal
The forum was held on Thursday in Beijing, with officials and corporate executives exchanging insights on promoting cooperation between China and Pakistan.
In his address to the audience, Badar U Zaman, Commercial Counsellor of the Embassy of Pakistan Beijing, explained the investment-friendly policies of the Pakistani government, strong consumer demand in the country and benefits of developing manufacturing in Pakistan.
“The good news is that in the last seven to eight years, the biggest foreign direct investor in Pakistan has been China,” said the commercial counsellor, noting that “most of the investments from China are into the GDP projects like infrastructure projects.”
“We need an active participation from the private enterprises of China,” he said.
Zhou Xiaoyan, vice president of the China Council for International Investment Promotion, told the forum that deepening trade relations with China is the common desire of the industries of both countries. “We hope that Pakistani enterprises will improve their manufacturing level and adapt to the Chinese market, such as its trend of high-quality consumption, e-commerce consumption, personalized consumption and green consumption.”
Pakistan is expected to further open up in areas such as machinery and equipment, construction, information technology and digital trade planning to facilitate the transformation and upgrading of the China-Pakistan trade structure, according to Zhou.
Other officials and entrepreneurs also attended the forum. Hanif Lakhany, vice president of Federation of Pakistan Chamber of Commerce & Industry, outlined the potential growth of Pakistan’s economy. Wang Lu, representative of China Road and Bridge Corporation, introduced the construction progress of Rashakai Special Economic Zone of Pakistan.
