'BRI states must adopt diversified supply chain'
In the current environment, the global supply chain has been continuously upgrading digitally, ie, achieving innovative and sustainable development, which is also a major responsibility that Pakistan and China should shoulder together, remarked National Bank of Pakistan (NBP) Beijing Office Chief Representative Shaikh Muhammad Shariq.
Speaking at a panel discussion on supply chain services held during the 3rd China International Supply Chain Expo, the chief representative pointed out that the key link is to provide complete localised financial services and reduce conflicts between traders, which is crucial for both large leading enterprises and small startups.
"The global supply chain must take a diversified path, not only for industrial powers like China, but also for all countries participating in the Belt and Road Initiative (BRI), and of course Pakistan, which is jointly developing CPEC (China-Pakistan Economic Corridor)."
Shariq emphasised, "The optimised financing mechanism will allow us to have smoother capital flow and reduce our reliance on a single path, helping us to seek better financing strategies."
Talking specifically about financial links between China and Pakistan, Shariq elaborated on NBP's efforts.
"In 1981, we entered the Chinese market and opened a representative office in Beijing. Since then, we have been helping Chinese companies in different fields that are interested in doing business in Pakistan."
"From a deeper perspective, policymakers in China and Pakistan have established very deep connections to simplify all financial-related processes, assisting us to confidently provide comprehensive services in the current complex and changing international environment, solving financial problems and of course the most important liquidity problem for enterprises. In a nutshell, a very stable supply chain ecosystem allows better cross-border cooperation between our two countries."
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
Business Recorder
5 hours ago
- Business Recorder
China tariff deadline can be rolled forward 90 days: US Treasury chief
WASHINGTON: A deadline for tariffs between the United States and China to snap back to higher levels could be extended in a '90-day increment,' US Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent said Wednesday, ahead of trade talks next week. Top officials from the world's two biggest economies are set to meet in Sweden on Monday and Tuesday, with Bessent in the US delegation and Chinese Vice Premier He Lifeng attending the talks. 'We're in a very good place with China now,' Bessent told Bloomberg Television on Wednesday. He added that the upcoming talks would likely move beyond rare earths and export controls, and 'on to bigger discussions.' Asked about the August 12 deadline, when reduced tit-for-tat tariffs are due to bounce back to steeper levels, Bessent signaled openness to a significant extension. 'I think that we could roll it forward, maybe in a 90-day increment,' he said in the interview. Markets pare bets on Fed rate cuts following U.S.-China tariff delay 'Both sides have de-escalated, and I think we can get into a very good cadence of regular meetings with them,' he said. Washington and Beijing had slapped escalating tariffs on each other's exports in April, reaching prohibitive triple-digit levels, but both sides reached an agreement to temporarily lower them after negotiations in Geneva. The truce, however, is set to expire in August. Officials from the two countries also met in London in June. On Wednesday, Bessent said he expected the upcoming discussions could include talks on Chinese purchases of Russian and Iranian oil, alongside security issues. He said both countries would also discuss 'purchasing agreements,' especially on agriculture. Trade talks between the United States and China had initially stalled after their Geneva meeting, with Washington accusing Beijing of violating their pact and slow-walking export license approvals for rare earths. But the countries have since agreed to move forward on a framework to implement their consensus. Asked about a potential meeting between President Donald Trump and his Chinese counterpart Xi Jinping, Bessent said he did not expect anything before September and had no further information on this front. Regarding China's placing of an exit ban on a US government employee, Bessent said that issue could be on the agenda, but that he did not see the move as an attempt to gain leverage with Washington.
Business Recorder
7 hours ago
- Business Recorder
Indian rupee dips but firmer yuan, exporter dollar sales cushion losses
MUMBAI: The Indian rupee ended marginally weaker on Wednesday with the strength in the Chinese yuan and exporter activity helping the currency hold above a psychologically important support level. The rupee closed at 86.4075 per U.S. dollar, down slightly from its close at 86.3675 in the previous session but managing to hold above the 86.50 support level. The offshore Chinese yuan rose to a near three-week high while the dollar index was a tad lower at 97.4. Dollar sales from a large private bank and exporter activity also helped the rupee contain its losses on the day, alongside positive regional cues, a trader at a state-run bank said. India's benchmark equity indexes, the BSE Sensex and Nifty 50 closed higher by about 0.6% each, tracking gains in global equities that were buoyed by hopes of easing trade tensions after a deal between the U.S. and Japan. 'Equity markets globally are rallying on the view that deals reduce uncertainty,' ING said in a note. Indian rupee weakens slightly, broad dollar softness cushions pressure U.S. President Donald Trump also announced a trade agreement with the Philippines, released terms of a previous deal with Indonesia on Tuesday and said that EU representatives were coming for trade negotiations on Wednesday. Officials from China and the U.S. are also expected to meet next week to discuss an extension to the deadline for negotiating a trade deal. For India, though, the prospects of a trade deal before the August 1 deadline have dimmed, with talks deadlocked over tariff cuts on key agricultural and dairy products. Foreign portfolio outflows and the lack of an outcome on trade negotiations have maintained pressure on the rupee, said Dilip Parmar, a foreign exchange research analyst at HDFC Securities.
Business Recorder
8 hours ago
- Business Recorder
Copper edges up to two-week peak on hopes for trade deals
LONDON: Copper prices touched their highest in over two weeks on Wednesday as a U.S.-Japan trade deal boosted sentiment, although gains were capped over concern about surpluses and rising inventories. Three-month copper on the London Metal Exchange was up 0.2% at $9,934 at 0945 GMT, its strongest since July 4. Copper has gained about 4% over the past week and is approaching its three-month peak of $10,020.50 hit on July 2. Sentiment was boosted after U.S. President Donald Trump struck a trade deal with Japan, lifting global share markets. Metals investors are focused on a potential trade deal with the world's top metals consumer China ahead of a meeting scheduled for next week between U.S. and Chinese officials in Stockholm. Worries about oversupply, however, weighed on the market, highlighted by data showing the copper market was in a surplus of 272,000 metric tons in the first five months of the year. Copper edges higher, others slip on uncertainty Also chipping away support was an overhang of inventories in the U.S. after traders took advantage of higher prices there due to the expectation of tariffs being imposed, which are due to take effect on August 1. 'We could see … copper range-trading once the tariffs come into play or possibly even soften,' said Nitesh Shah, commodity strategist at WisdomTree. 'The U.S. will be using up all that stockpile of copper before importing new units from abroad and therefore demand may look a little bit weak for that period of inventory rundown.' Copper flows are now being diverted away from the U.S. and are showing up in rising LME inventories, which have surged 38% since June 27. Among other metals, aluminium dropped 0.5% to $2,641.50 a ton and zinc dipped 0.1% to $2,856, while lead gained 0.8% to $2,026, nickel added 0.1% to $15,545 and tin was up 0.3% to $34,000.
