Pakistan official says country plans doubling UAE trade to $20B

Pakistan plans to double its trade with the United Arab Emirates from $10 billion to $20 billion within the next three to four years, a senior government official said on Monday, citing rising investor confidence and strengthening bilateral ties.

Khurram Schehzad, adviser to Pakistan’s finance minister, said Pakistan offers lucrative investment opportunities in the agriculture, food security, data and analytics, AI, mining and minerals, and defense sectors.

“We already have $10 billion in total trade with the UAE, and we aspire to double it to $20 billion in the next two to three years,” Schehzad said during his address to the Institute of Chartered Accountants of Pakistan (ICAP) Middle East CFO Conference in Dubai.

He said the UAE remains one of Pakistan’s most significant economic partners, not only in trade but also in remittances and investment flows, as a huge population of the Pakistani diaspora resides in the country.

“Remittances we receive from the UAE alone are around $8 billion annually, with a 42% growth last year. It’s a huge one,” Schehzad said.

UAE investment and privatization drive

A Gulf News report shared to Nukta by the finance minister's advisor quoted him as saying that the interest of Emirati investors is increasing in Pakistan’s privatization program.

He noted that Abu Dhabi-based International Holding Company (IHC) — one of the Middle East’s largest listed conglomerates, with a market capitalization of around $240 billion — recently acquired Pakistan’s state-owned First Women Bank Limited.

“Although this transaction size is small, it has entered Pakistan at a point where we’ve been facing a lot of challenges,” he said about the $14.6 million (PKR 4.1 billion) transaction.

Schehzad also pointed to Pakistan’s successful $1 billion fundraising from commercial banks in the Middle East, led by Dubai Islamic Bank and Standard Chartered, as another sign of improving investor confidence.

“From your perspective, His Excellency, the significance of the investor is very important,” Schehzad said, addressing UAE Minister of Foreign Trade Dr. Thani bin Ahmed Al Zeyoudi. “This shows trust in Pakistan’s market at a time when things are turning around.”

Macroeconomic recovery and reform agenda

The adviser said Pakistan has made “meaningful progress” in stabilizing its economy over the past year, with improvements in key macroeconomic indicators.

“Inflation has been a good story. Fiscal and external sides have been a good story. Interest rates have been a good story. Privatization has a bigger story,” he said about Pakistan's inflation, which has come down to around 7% from a record 40% in 2024.

Schehzad added that renewed confidence from Gulf investors, supported by financial stabilization and upgraded credit ratings, signals Pakistan’s return to global markets.