Pakistan finance minister Muhammad Aurengzeb, left for his second visit to the United States in two weeks to end a commercial agreement with Washington, said his office on Monday night.
The trip occurs after the Minister of Foreign Affairs, Ishaq Dar, said on Friday that the United States and Pakistan were “very close” to a commercial agreement that could reach a few days, but the comments of the United States after Dar met with the Secretary of State Framework Rubio did not mention the timeline.
Read: GIVE, RUBIO DISCUSS
“A final discussion about the commercial dialogue of Pakistan-United States will take place during the visit,” said Pakistan’s Ministry of Finance in a statement, adding that a commercial agreement will benefit both countries.
Aurengzeb said he had “productive commercial conversations” at meetings with the United States Secretary of Commerce, Howard Lutnick, and the ambassador of the United States commercial representative, Jamieson Greer, during his previous visit on July 18.
Negotiations, focused on reciprocal rates, are part of a broader impulse to restore economic ties at the time of changing geopolitical alignments and Islamabad’s efforts to avoid steep tasks of the United States in exports.
Pakistan faces a 29% tariff on exports to the United States under the measures of President Donald Trump to attack countries with large commercial surpluses with Washington.
Pakistan’s surplus was around $ 3 billion in 2024.
Read more: Dar’s US Visit Sets Stage for stronger commercial ties
To compensate for the imbalance and facilitate tariff pressures, Islamabad has offered to import more American assets, including crude oil, and open investment opportunities through concessions for US companies in the Pakistan mining sector.
The relations between the United States and Pakistan enjoyed a great impulse when Trump received the Pakistan Marshal, also Munir, at the White House last month for an unprecedented meeting.
Pakistan aims to expand bilateral commercial relations in traditional and non -traditional sectors, said the Ministry of Finance.
There is significant potential for associations in key sectors such as information technology, minerals and agriculture, he added.
