Egypt and Pakistan to boost trade

CAIRO, May 23, 2010 (AFP) - Pakistani Foreign Minister Shah Mehmood Qureshi said on Sunday that his country plans to boost trade with Egypt, during a visit to Cairo where he met with President Hosni Mubarak.







Qureshi, who was accompanied on his trip by several ministers and a large delegation of businessmen, praised the "excellent" relations between Pakistan and Egypt, the official MENA news agency reported.

During talks with his Egyptian counterpart Ahmed Abul Gheit on Saturday, the two diplomats agreed to set up a ministerial level committee to oversee bilateral trade that would meet every two years, Qureshi told MENA.

The two countries would also hold political consultations once a year, Qureshi said.

The talks focused on "exploring new trade opportunities between the two countries, including exporting Pakistani wheat as well as medical and surgical equipment to Egypt," MENA said.

The two sides also looked into exporting Egyptian goods to Pakistan, including fertilizers," it said.

The annual volume of trade between Egypt and Pakistan currently stands at four million dollars, according to MENA.