ISLAMABAD: Pakistan’s exports to major Western and Northern European markets have recorded negative growth in the first nine months of the current fiscal year compared with a year ago, despite the continuation of the Generalised Scheme of Preferences (GSP+) status, raising concerns about weakening demand for Pakistani goods. The development comes against the backdrop of a shifting global trade environment, as the US-Iran conflict sends shockwaves through the Middle East, impacting global goods transport, accelerating the fall in exports to European markets. Additionally, earlier this year, European Union preferential market access was offered to India, one of Pakistan’s key competitors in textiles. Earlier this month, the EU Ambassador to Pakistan Raimundas Karoblis also warned Pakistan that access to the GSP+ — which allows duty-free entry into most European markets — was neither guaranteed nor automatic, signalling a more conditional approach from Brussels reliant on Islamabad’s...
China’s top diplomat Wang Yi said Beijing will “firmly support” Myanmar in safeguarding its national sovereignty and security, in a meeting with junta chief-turned-president, Min Aung Hlaing. Wang has been on a three-country visit to Southeast Asia this week, travelling to Cambodia, Thailand and Myanmar, seeking to strengthen ties in the face of “risks” and present Beijing as a more stable alternative to the United States. Beijing supports Myanmar “in forging a successful development path that aligns with its national conditions and enjoys the support of its people”, Wang told Min Aung Hlaing during a visit to capital Naypyidaw, according to a Chinese foreign ministry readout published late on Saturday. “As this year marks the first year of the new Myanmar government’s tenure, both sides should seize this opportunity to carry forward and promote their traditional friendship, [and] open up new prospects for bilateral relations,” Wang said. Min Aung Hlaing was sworn in as president t...