PCJCCI president expresses satisfaction over Economic Survey, federal budget

LAHORE: Nazir Hussain, President Pakistan China Joint Chamber of Commerce and Industry (PCJCCI), appreciated the government’s launch of the Pakistan Economic Survey 2024–25 and Budget 2026, calling them strong indicators of Pakistan’s commitment to economic stability, investment, and regional connectivity through the China-Pakistan Economic Corridor (CPEC).

He emphasized that CPEC was playing a transformative role in building infrastructure, boosting trade, and creating job opportunities, especially through key projects in road, port, energy, and urban development.

He added that the completion of several major infrastructure projects under CPEC, including the Multan-Sukkur and Hakla-D I Khan motorways, and the operationalization of the New Gwadar International Airport was already improving logistics, reducing travel time, and opening new trade corridors.

Brig Mansoor Saeed Sheikh (retd), Senior Vice President PCJCCI particularly praised the progress in Gwadar, where the Gwadar Port and Free Zone have seen over $250 million in investment from the China Overseas Ports Holding Company Limited (COPHCL), enabling operations in logistics, manufacturing, fisheries, and finance.

With generous incentives like a 23-year tax holiday, full foreign ownership, and one-window facilitation, Gwadar is rapidly becoming a strategic commercial hub for the region.

Zafar Iqbal, Vice President PCJCCI said that Budget 2026 had also allocated significant funding under the Public Sector Development Programme (PSDP) for ongoing and new CPEC projects, including infrastructure development in Gwadar, land acquisition, and the second phase of the East Bay Expressway.

He also highlighted achievements in social infrastructure, such as the completion of a 1.2 million-gallon-per-day desalination plant to address water scarcity in Gwadar, and progress in digital connectivity, including the completion of a cross-border optical fibre cable.

Salahuddin Hanif, Secretary General further welcomed signs of macroeconomic stabilization, with inflation recorded at 4.6 percent and GDP growth at 2.7 percent in the outgoing fiscal year. These are positive signs for investor confidence. Chinese businesses are already showing renewed interest, and CPEC’s next phase will focus on job creation, industrial development, and local empowerment.

The PCJCCI reaffirmed its commitment to promoting bilateral trade, facilitating business partnerships, and supporting the government’s development goals under CPEC and Budget 2026. “CPEC is not just an economic corridor it’s a symbol of long-term cooperation and shared prosperity. The foundation has been laid. Now it’s time to build on it, together.”

Copyright Business Recorder, 2025