Asad Umar terms his visit to Qatar as \"very productive\"

December 17, 2018: Finance Minister Asad Umar has described his visit to Qatar as “very productive” as he sees numerous business opportunities for both countries, a report by Gulf Times stated on Monday.

The Minister had arrived in Qatar to attend the Doha Forum, a leading global policy forum held under the patronage of His Highness the Amir Sheikh Tamim bin Hamad al-Thani.

“Doha Forum is a platform where Pakistan needs to be present. We are living in the world of global connectivity. Pakistan wants to reach out to the world for promoting trade and investment opportunities,” he said.

Speaking about different sectors where both countries could improve economic co-operation, Umar said: “One obvious area for continued co-operation is LNG. Pakistan’s LNG demand is increasing rapidly. Qatar is already the biggest supplier to Pakistan. We have tremendous growth potential in the energy sector. Perhaps, the biggest economic opportunity, which is being created in Pakistan right now, is through the China Pakistan Economic Corridor (CPEC) and special industrial zones that are being set up in Pakistan.”

Regarding a probable currency swap agreement between Pakistan and Qatar, the minister said: “That is certainly something of interest for us. We have already started doing it with China. We will be more than happy to explore the possibility with other countries, including Qatar. One thing to do it in a meaningful way is to increase two-way trade.

“Clearly, Qatar is the market with a lot of potential for Pakistan. That is one of the messages that I will be taking back. We need to bring Pakistani business here.”

Regarding co-operation in the port sector, the minister said that there is a possibility as Gwadar Port has been attracting a lot of attention.

“The most developed zone at the port is the Chinese economic zone. We are inviting other countries as well. We will be very keen that Qatar also comes in.”