President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan said Thursday he agreed with Pakistani Prime Minister Shahbaz Sharif to intensify efforts to reach a bilateral trade volume of $5 billion (TL 180.53 billion), as he also announced that it reached the highest level of $1.4 billion last year.
"We agree with the prime minister to increase our efforts to reach the target of $5 billion in trade volume," Erdoğan said at a joint news conference with Sharif in Islamabad.
Erdoğan arrived in the Pakistani capital on an official visit on Wednesday after visiting Malaysia and Indonesia.
Addressing the long-standing historical relations between the two countries and having the seventh meeting of the High-Level Strategic Cooperation Council of Türkiye, both Erdoğan and Sharif also delivered speeches at the Pakistan-Türkiye Business Forum later in the day.
The bilateral trade volume between Türkiye and Pakistan reached its highest level in 2024, Erdoğan said in his address at the forum. He said the trade volume rose nearly 30% year-over-year in 2024 to reach $1.4 billion.
"However, we are still far behind our trade volume target of $5 billion. Undoubtedly, we all have a role in realizing our potential," he added.
"In this context, I believe that expanding the scope of our preferential trade agreement and evolving it toward a free trade agreement will lead to a stable and balanced increase in trade volume," the president further said.
"In fact, the joint declaration confirming this intention was signed by our trade ministers today. In addition, it is important for us to develop combined freight transportation, provide diversity in our transportation opportunities, and make progress, especially in road and railway," said Erdoğan.
He also invited Pakistani companies to Türkiye, citing comprehensive investment incentives. "Our Presidential Investment Office will guide you throughout the process," he said.
The president also highlighted Pakistan's potential, its dynamic population of nearly 250 million, noting it was one of the leading countries that are candidates to become one of the major economies of the future.
