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ISLAMABAD: Pakistan's Commerce Minister, Humayun Akhtar Khan said Thursday, Pakistan and Yemen will soon start negotiations forsigning a Preferential Tariff Agreement (PTA), leading to a Free Trade Agreement (FTA) between the two countries.

Agreement to this effect was reached during the fourth Pak-Yemen Joint Ministerial Commission (JMC) meeting held in Sana'a, on March 1, Humayun Akhtar, who led the Pakistan side at the JMC, told a press conference here.

The Commerce Minister said, Yemen will send a technical delegation to Pakistan in the coming months to finalize the modalities in this regard. Humayun said, during Pak-Yemen JMC, three agreements were signed including agreement on trade, agreement on avoidance of double taxation and agreement on cooperation in health. Besides, he said, a protocol on economic cooperation between the Federation of Yemen Chambers of Commerce and Industry and Federation of Pakistan Chambers of Commerce and Industry (FPCCI) was also signed during the JMC.

The Minister said, it was emphasized during JMC that excellent bilateral relations which the two countries enjoy should be reflected in their bilateral trade and economic cooperation, with a total bilateral trade volume currently at around $ 50 million per annum.

The Minister observed that Pakistan will also hold a single country exhibition in Yemen this year, for promotion of trade and economic cooperation, while Yemen will also hold an exhibition in Pakistan. Humayun said, the two sides also discussed possibilities of agreements in other fields like higher education and research, information technology, tourism, culture, sports etc.

The Minister was of the view that enhanced trade and economic cooperation with Yemen will have a positive impact on Pakistan's trade relations with African countries including Sudan, Somalia, Ethiopia and Djibouti, having a population of around 120 million. Humayun said, he also held fruitful meetings with Yemeni Vice President, Abdul Rabbu Mansour Hadi, Prime Minister, Abdulqadar Ba-Jamal and Deputy Prime Minister and Minister for Planning and International Cooperation during the visit.

Sohail Altaf, Vice President of FPCCI, who accompanied the Commerce Minister during this visit, told newsmen there was receptive and enthusiastic response from the Yemeni side during the visit. He said, the Yemeni government, people and businessmen see Pakistanis as their friends and well-wishers, with tremendous desire of having enhanced trade and economic cooperation.

To a question, the Minister said, Pakistan was actively pursuing, in consultation with the exporters, the proposed 13.2% anti-dumping duty on Pakistani bed-linen by the European Union. He, however, observed that as the combined effect of such technical issues is a trade distortion and, adding, we are taking up such issues at the political level. Pakistan exports worth $ 500 million of bed-linen to the European Union per annum.