MFN status for India by October: Pakistan

ISLAMABAD: Pakistan today said the process of giving India Most Favoured Nation status to boost bilateral trade is expected to be completed by October next year.

Foreign Office spokesman Abdul Basit said "October next year is the timeframe which has been given" for granting MFN status to India.

He was responding to a question during the weekly news briefing on the latest status of the Pakistan government's move to grant MFN status to India.

Information Minister Firdous Ashiq Awan had recently announced during a news conference that the cabinet had conferred the status to India but the government subsequently clarified that the process was yet to be completed.

Basit said the Commerce Ministry is working on the issue and a decision will be made "in sync with our interest and WTO rules".

"The decision in principle was taken by the cabinet. Details as to how MFN status will be granted, the nitty-gritty are being worked out," he said.

Following talks between their Commerce Ministers, India and Pakistan recently unveiled a slew of measures to normalise trade relations and to boost trade from USD two billion to USD six billion in three years.