The federal government has intensified its diplomatic efforts to safeguard Pakistani exports from facing additional US tariffs, deciding to dispatch a high-level delegation to Washington within the next 24 hours, sources confirmed on Monday.
The delegation, to be led by Federal Minister for Commerce Jam Kamal Khan, will engage in crucial negotiations with the Trump administration to prevent the imposition of a proposed 29% tariff on Pakistani products. Key officials from the Ministry of Commerce, Ministry of Finance, and Foreign Office will accompany the minister to support the discussions.
Sources revealed that Pakistan is seeking to address the $3 billion trade deficit currently in favour of Pakistan. To counterbalance the situation and reduce pressure from Washington, Islamabad has proposed increasing imports from the United States by up to $2 billion.
According to the plan, every $1 billion reduction in the trade deficit would lead to a 9% decrease in tariffs imposed by the US on Pakistani goods. In line with this strategy, Pakistan may import American products such as Puma cotton, machinery, and soybean oil, while also working to boost exports of bed linen, denim, and towels to the US by an estimated $500 million.
Prior to the latest tensions, the average US tariff on Pakistani products stood at 9.9%. However, the US government recently hiked the tariff by an additional 10% for a 90-day period. Pakistani officials fear that if no corrective measures are taken, tariffs could soar to 29% after the 90-day window.
Commerce Ministry officials emphasized that a comprehensive strategy has been developed to avoid the steep tariff increase. As part of broader trade facilitation efforts, Pakistan is also advocating for the removal of non-tariff barriers to enhance bilateral trade flows.
"The delegation's immediate objective is to negotiate a rollback of the increased tariffs and secure better market access for Pakistani products, while ensuring a more balanced and sustainable trade relationship with the US," said an official familiar with the matter.
