Bayan News – Pakistani media, citing the Afghanistan-Pakistan Joint Chamber of Commerce, have reported a sharp decline in the trade volume between the two countries.
Zia-ul-Haq Sarhadi, vice president of the chamber, told The News, a Pakistani daily, that the trade level between Afghanistan and Pakistan has dropped from $2.5 billion to $700 million.
The report highlights factors such as the requirement for a temporary acceptance document, bank guarantees equal to the value of the goods, the addition of 14 items to the negative list, increased tariffs on Afghan transit goods, and the detention of over 300 containers of Afghan traders’ goods as key reasons for the reduction in trade between the two countries.
According to Sarhadi, Pakistan’s government policies have led to a significant portion of Afghan goods being redirected to Chabahar Port, which has also resulted in thousands of customs workers in Pakistan losing their jobs.
The Afghanistan-Pakistan Joint Chamber of Commerce has called for an immediate review of these policies to prevent further harm to trade and economic cooperation between the two nations.
The decline in trade comes amid increasingly strained relations between the Taliban and the current government of Pakistan.
Over the past year, the Pakistani government has repeatedly detained containers carrying Afghan commercial goods at Karachi Port.
