US, Pakistan discuss establishing commodities market to boost agri sector

Top officials of United States and Pakistan including Federal Minister for Finance and Revenue Muhammad Aurangzeb Tuesday discussed the establishment of a commodities market in Pakistan.

The development came during a meeting between Aurangzeb and Kevin Piccoli, Deputy Director in the Office of International Affairs at the US Commodity Future Trading Commission (CFTC), according to a statement issued by the Finance Division.

Chairman Securities and Exchange Commission of Pakistan (SECP) Akif Saeed and senior officials from the Finance Division and officials from US Embassy in Pakistan also attended the meeting.

“The meeting discussed the role of agricultural commodities market and the collaboration between the SECP and CFTC for an ongoing series of capacity-building training sessions on the development of commodities futures market, regulation and oversight leading to a well-functioning commodities market in Pakistan,” read the statement.

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During the meeting, Aurangzeb welcomed the initiative and highlighted the role of agriculture in Pakistan’s economy, particularly its contribution to the GDP of the country.

He said that agriculture and information technology are the backbone of our economy and the real levers of economic growth of the country.

“IT are the mainstay of Pakistan’s economy,” he said.

The Finance Minister noted that while Pakistan’s economy during FY2024 grew by 2.38%, agriculture emerged as a main driver of growth, registering an impressive growth of 6.25% due to double- digit growth in output of major crops.

“He said that both agriculture and IT in Pakistan were largely driven by domestic factors and a healthy and consistent growth in these sectors was a positive sign and a stabilizing factor in view of their export potential for national economy,” the statement read.