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Shri Kamal Nath, Union Minister of Commerce & Industry, will inaugurate the First Meeting of the Joint Study Group (JSG) on Economic Cooperation between India and Pakistan, here on 22nd February, 2005. The two-day (22-23 February) meeting will be held at the Commerce Secretaries’ level of the two countries – Shri S.N. Menon and Mr. Tasneem Noorani respectively.
The decision to set up a Joint Study Group on Economic Cooperation between India and Pakistan was announced following the fourth meeting of the SAARC Commerce Ministers held in Islamabad on 22nd and 23rd November, 2004, which was attended by Shri Kamal Nath. It was agreed that for adopting a strategy to boost trade between India and Pakistan, a Joint Study Group to be co-chaired by Commerce Secretaries of both the countries would be set up and this group would discuss measures to enhance bilateral trade between India and Pakistan and identify the barriers to trade.
During the current financial so far, i.e., in the first four months (April to July), India’s exports to Pakistan have shown a record 328% increase, having gone up to US $ 167 million from US $ 39 million during the corresponding period of the last fiscal. If this trend is any indication, bilateral trade between India and Pakistan may cross US $ 500 million during the current financial year 2004-05. The potential of trade and economic relations between the two countries is underlined by the fact that at present India-Pakistan trade amounts to less than 1% of their respective global trade.
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SB/MRS
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