Export of cotton increased 22pc during FY2010-11, NA told

ISLAMABAD: Federal Minister for Commerce, Makhdoom Amin Fahim, on Monday informed the National Assembly (NA) that the export of textile and cotton has increased by 22.22 percent to $22 billion during the ongoing fiscal year as compared to $18 billion last year.
Responding to a question during the question and answer session of NA, he said that the total exports in the last quarter of 2010 was recorded at Rs 497 billion.
He said that the country could export anything to India except those specified in Schedule I of the Export Policy Order 2009-10.
Fahim said that exports of goods specified in Schedule II of the Order would be subject to certain conditions, adding that that the previous regulating Schedules II and I apply to export to all the countries, including India.
He said that in terms of Appendix ‘G’ of the Import Policy Order 2009-10, the items appearing against serial numbers 1 to 23, 45, 47, 48, 142, 211 to 214, 220, 269, 1,147, 1,149 to 1,194, 1,288 to 1,315 and 1,579 of the appendix are allowed through Wagah, which comes to 109 tariff lines at 8-digit HS Code.
The minister further added that the following items are exchangeable with India through the Wagah Border: live animal, halal meat, potatoes, tomatoes, onion, garlic, raw cane and beet sugar, oil cake and other solid residues resulting from extraction of Soya bean oil, cement and clinker, long staple cotton, short staple cotton, yarn, iron, paddy harvesters and paddy dryers.
He informed the House that the total sum of foreign exchange incurred on the import of edible oil during 2009-10 was $1,337.7 million and during 2010-11 it was $ 963.32 million, adding that the government had decided to import 112,500 metric tonnes of urea during this year through the Gwadar Port.
The federal minister maintained that the Trading Corporation of Pakistan (TCP) has imported urea and wheat during the last three years through the Gwadar Port.
Federal Minister for Religious Affairs, Syed Khurshid Shah, said that export of cotton yarn was 275 million kilogrammes this year while it was 363 million kilogrammes last year but its price was high in the domestic market.
He said that the export of textile and cotton industry is increasing due to the good policies of the government.
While responding to a question by PML-N member Raja Muhammad Asad Khan, the minister said that there are several reasons for a shift of Pakistani textile and cotton investors to Bangladesh.

(Source: http://www.dailytimes.com.pk/default.asp?page=2011\02\22\story_22-2-2011_pg7_17)