Aurangzeb eyes ‘game-changer’ investment discussions with US

Finmin meets US Secretary of Commerce Howard Lutnick, Trade Representative Jamieson Greer

Monitoring Desk

WASHINGTON: Finance Minister Muhammad Aurangzeb has said the government aims to follow the ongoing trade talks with the United States by discussing investment, terming it a potential “game-changer” for economic ties between the two countries.
He made the remarks after meeting with US Secretary of Commerce Howard Lutnick and Trade Representative Ambassador Jamieson Greer as part of a critical round of trade talks aimed at securing tariff relief and expanding bilateral economic cooperation.
“One thing we discussed was that we have to move beyond the immediate trade imperative, which is obviously very critical, but besides that, for the Pakistan-US relationship to be brought to the next level and bring in a real step change, [there is] an investment imperative that will hopefully emerge,” Aurangzeb said in a video statement.
“Areas [for investment] have already been identified,” the minister said, mentioning minerals and mining, artificial intelligence, digital infrastructure and cryptocurrency.
“We feel this will be a real game-changer, God-willing, in terms of the economic relationship between Pakistan and the United States.”
Aurangzeb added that both sides committed to begin their talks with trade and follow them through “very quickly with investment discussions between the two countries and real execution of the investment upside that is available, so that it becomes a win-win” for Pakistan and the US.
The minister termed his dialogue with Lutnick and Greer “very constructive”. Pakistan’s Ambassador to the US Rizwan Saeed Sheikh and Commerce Secretary Jawad Paul, who were present during the meeting, accompanied Aurangzeb in the video statement.
“Positive progress over the last few weeks and months was reviewed. Equally importantly, we focused on the slightly outstanding aspects,” the finance czar said, adding there was a clear commitment from both sides to “get closure” on those items.
The minister highlighted that as the US was Pakistan’s largest trading partner, it was quite critical to move forward in the “same spirit” in which the recent discussions had taken place.
“In the next few days, we hope that the coming leadership-level announcements will reflect all the hard work and efforts that have been put in both by Pakistan and the US side,” Aurangzeb said.
Pakistan aims to finalise a long-term reciprocal tariff agreement that would prevent the re-imposition of a 29 per cent tariff on Pakistani exports — primarily textiles and agricultural products. While Trump has announced tariffs for some countries, talks with others are ongoing ahead of his extended August 1 deadline.
Earlier this month, the countries reached an initial understanding on a deal that could shape the future of the country’s key export sectors. A formal announcement on any deal is expected only after the US concludes similar ongoing negotiations with other trade partners.