Pakistan, US in final-stage talks on trade pact

August 11, 2025 (MLN): Pakistan and the United States are in discussions to finalize the finer points of a trade agreement that will include investment commitments from Washington.

“The agreement, with more detailed provisions, will be negotiated and discussed in the months ahead,” Bilal Azhar Kayani told Bloomberg TV’s Haslinda Amin.

He noted that Islamabad is pushing for improved tariffs on key exports to the US, while seeking firm investment pledges in critical sectors such as energy, mining, and minerals.

The talks come as Pakistan works to strengthen economic and military ties with the US under President Donald Trump’s administration.

The renewed engagement has been marked by high-level visits, including Army Chief Field Marshal Asim Munir’s second trip to Washington in less than two months. During his earlier June trip, Munir met Trump over a luncheon  becoming the first serving Pakistani army chief to meet a sitting US president and held talks with senior political and military leadership.

Addressing members of the Pakistani diaspora in Florida on his current visit, Munir described the back-to-back trips as marking “a new dimension in Pak–US relations” and said the aim was to place ties on a “constructive, sustainable and positive path.”

He called overseas Pakistanis “a source of pride and dignity” and highlighted their role in supporting Pakistan’s progress, describing them as a “brain gain” for the country.

Pakistan has already secured a reduction in levies to 19%, significantly lower than the 29% initially imposed by Trump, and well below rates applied to other South Asian countries such as India and Bangladesh, according to Bloomberg.

Negotiations also cover expanded market access for US goods, easing of non-tariff barriers, and revisions to rules of origin, Kayani said.

The US remains Pakistan’s largest export destination, with shipments valued at over $5bn in 2024, compared with imports from the US totaling $2.1bn.

Trump, speaking about the trade deal last month, said Washington plans to partner with Pakistan to develop what he described as the country’s “massive oil reserves” and is in the process of selecting a US oil company to lead the project.

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