KARACHI,April-07-2025) The Chairman of National Business Group Pakistan, the President of the Pakistan Businessmen and Intellectuals Forum, the President of All Karachi Industrial Alliance, the Chairman of the FPCCI Advisory Board, and the President and former provincial minister, Mian Zahid Hussain, said on Monday that the US President Trump’s economic policies signal the beginning of a global trade conflict.
He stated that the main goal of tariff policy is to put pressure on China’s economy, which is growing at an impressive rate.
Mian Zahid Hussain said that US tariffs would result in a global recession and may impact Pakistani exports, remittances, and revenue.
Talking to the business community, the veteran business leader said US move can be remedied with better and timely measures.
The business leader said that Pakistan imports about $1.75 billion from the US and exports $5.5 billion annually. Thus, the US faces a trade deficit of over $3.75 billion.
The US has imposed a 29 percent tariff on Pakistan to eliminate this deficit. Therefore, if Pakistan increases its imports from the US by about $3.75 billion annually, the US trade deficit with Pakistan will be eliminated. He said Pakistan’s tariff will be 10 percent instead of 29 percent.
Mian Zahid Hussain said that the same US formula will apply to all the countries. The countries that eliminate their trade deficit by importing the same amount of goods from the US will get benefit.
He said that if President Trump’s policy is successful, trade will shift to the United States instead of China because all countries will be forced to boost import from the United States to maintain their exports, which will have a devastating impact on China’s export market.
He said that China, which currently exports $3.5 trillion worldwide, will try to shift a significant portion of this to the United States, which will revive American industry.
If the Trumph’s new tariff strategy succeeds, approximately $2 trillion in annual imports could be shifted from China to the United States.
The consequences of this new US strategy will also be devastating for the economy of neighboring India. However, the Indian government and businessmen will soon become partners in the new US strategy. They will formulate a plan to take its share of the new $2 trillion export market that the US will gain because the current industrial infrastructure in the US cannot fully fulfill the new orders of $2 trillion.
For this, the US will need help of some friendly developing industrial countries to fulfil
additional export orders in accordance with US policies and interests. India is the most suitable country for this.
Mian Zahid Hussain said that Prime Minister Shahbaz Sharif has formed a task force under the leadership of Finance Minister Muhammad Aurangzeb Khan, which will negotiate with the US government to protect Pakistani trade.
In this regard, the Prime Minister has also formed a working group under the leadership of the Secretary of Commerce, which is a timely step.
Pakistan imports about $3 billion worth of palm oil from Indonesia and Malaysia, in return for which it can not only eliminate the additional tariffs but also become closer to the US by importing soybean oil, raw cotton, iron, steel, and other goods.
Mian Zahid Hussain said that many stock markets worldwide have crashed due to the US tariff measures. The Pakistan stock market has also seen huge ups and downs, and the index has decreased by more than 6,000 points.
Under the new changing trade conditions, Pakistan can also significantly increase its exports through better trade diplomacy with the US, and it will have to increase its efforts to find new markets.
Mian Zahid Hussain said that if India fails to join the new economic order with the US, its exports to the US may be affected, which may result in billions of dollars of trade in India’s textile, garment, pharmaceutical, and auto industries.
Mian Zahid Hussain said Pakistan must adopt a dynamic diplomatic strategy to reduce losses and create new opportunities. In this regard, branding, designing, and high-value products should be promoted instead of ordinary products.
Moreover, foreign investment should be increased, new trade agreements should be made, modern technology and automation should be promoted, energy should be made cheaper, and IT and freelancing exports should be increased, enabling Pakistan to overcome this situation.
