Pakistan says US invited to invest in China Pakistan-Economic Corridor

In an interesting move, cash-strapped Pakistan has invited the US to join the $60 billion China-Pakistan Economic Corridor, an ambitious infrastructure project looked with suspicion by the Trump administration for being non-transparent.

Pakistan Prime Minister Imran Khan's adviser on commerce Abdul Razak Dawood on Thursday said the government made the offer during a meeting with the US trade delegation led by Commerce Secretary Wilbur Ross on Wednesday, The Express Tribune reported.

Interestingly last month, senior US diplomat Alice Wells said that there is no transparency in the China-Pakistan Economic Corridor (CPEC) and the firms blacklisted by the World Bank have got contracts under the project, which will increase Pakistan's debt burden.

Wells, the Principal Deputy Assistant Secretary of State for South and Central Asia made the remarks while speaking at a think tank event during her four-day visit to Pakistan.

Khan's commerce advisor Razak said: "The US has shown interest in (Pakistan's) energy, oil and gas, agriculture and food processing".

China has committed to invest over USD 60 billion in Pakistan as part of the CPEC under which it planned to build a number of special economic zones.

India has objected to the CPEC as it is being laid through Pakistan-occupied Kashmir.

The US Commerce Secretary's visit is the result of recently-held discussions between Prime Minister Imran Khan and President Donald Trump to promote bilateral trade and enhanced economic engagements, the report said.

"Pakistan-US market access is the main point. We want access to the US market," Dawood said, adding that the US official has assured of his cooperation.

Sharing details of the meeting, Dawood said the US officials have also expressed interest in promoting e-commerce.

"They have agreed that the US International Development Finance Corporation would help in developing new businesses in Pakistan. The US secretary is ready to send a commerce delegation for coordination," Dawood said.

He said they discussed bilateral relations and matters of mutual interest, and agreed to enhance mutual trade to a maximum level.

A Free Trade Agreement (FTA) could be a long-term goal because of complexity involved in the process, Dawood said.

CPEC connecting China's Xinjiang with Pakistan's Gwadar port is regarded as the flagship project of the multi-billion dollar Belt and Road Initiative (BRI) which is aimed at furthering China's global influence with infrastructure projects funded by Chinese investments all over the world.

The initiative also led to allegations of smaller countries reeling under mounting Chinese debt after Sri Lanka gave its strategic Hambantota port in a debt swap to China in 2017 on a 99-year lease.

Article 370: Pak suspends Delhi-Lahore bus service, two cross-border trains

Pakistan has suspended the Lahore-Delhi friendship bus service, after suspending two cross-border trains, in the wake of India's decision revoking Jammu and Kashmir's special status and bifurcating the state into two Union Territories, a senior Pakistani minister has said.

The bus service was first started in February 1999 but suspended after the 2001 Parliament attack. It was restarted in July 2003.

The move is in line with the decisions taken during a meeting of the National Security Committee (NSC) held on Wednesday, Pakistan Minister for Communications and Postal Services Murad Saeed said.

"In line with the decisions of NSC Pak-India bus service is suspended," Saeed tweeted on Friday.

The Lahore-Delhi bus service is operated from Ambedkar Stadium terminal near Delhi Gate. DTC buses ply every Monday, Wednesday and Friday and Pakistan Tourism Development Corporation (PTDC) buses every Tuesday, Thursday & Saturday, from Delhi to Lahore.

For the return trip, DTC buses leave Lahore every Tuesday, Thursday, and Saturday whereas the PTDC buses are available every Monday, Wednesday, and Friday.

Earlier, Pakistan Minister of Railways Sheikh Rasheed Ahmad had announced on Friday that it will suspend the Thar Express train service with India which links the two countries across the Rajasthan border, a day after it stopped the Samjhauta Express following its decision to downgrade bilateral ties.

Rasheed announced to suspend the services of Thar Express and said that the last train would leave for India late Friday night, the official APP news agency reported.

The Thar Express has been running between Jodhpur's Bhagat ki Kothi station to Karachi every Friday night since services resumed on February 18, 2006 after a 41-year suspension.

He said the 133 km new track was built with the cost of Rs 13 billion for Thar Express and now the track would be used for Thar coal project.

On Thursday, Pakistan suspended the Samjhauta Express train service with India.

Rasheed said that the train service will not operate till he is the Railways minister and the bogies of the train will now be used for passengers travelling on the occasion of Eid.

The Samjhauta Express, named after the Hindi word for "agreement", comprises six sleeper coaches and an AC 3-tier coach. The train service was started on July 22, 1976 under the Simla Agreement that settled the 1971 war between the two nations.

On the Indian side, the train runs from Delhi to Attari and from Lahore to Wagah on the Pakistan side.

Pakistan's decision to suspended the services of the two trains came after it expelled Indian High Commissioner Ajay Bisaria on Wednesday and decided to downgrade the diplomatic ties with India over what it called New Delhi's "unilateral and illegal" move to revoke the special status of Jammu and Kashmir.

India on Monday revoked Article 370 of the Constitution to withdraw the special status given to Jammu and Kashmir and bifurcated the state into two Union Territories -- Jammu and Kashmir, and Ladakh.

Pak vs SA Preview ICC CWC 2019: Do-or-die clash for Pakistan, South Africa

An inconsistant Pakistan cricket team will clash against a vulnerable South Africa cricket team at Lord's in the 30th match ICC World Cup 2019 on Sunday. Both South Africa and Pakistan have 3 points in the ICC World Cup 2019 points table after playing six and five matches respectively but the Proteas are placed at eighth spot while the latter is at the ninth position due to difference in run rate.

South Africa is virtually out of the semi-finals race after losing to New Zealand at Edgbaston, Birmingham as Kane Williamson snatched the victory from Proteas in a must win game. on the other hand, Pakistan might still sneak into the semifinals, provided they win their remaining four games and other results go in their favour.

When Pakistan were pummelled by West Indies in their tournament opener, many of their loyal fans drew parallel to their triumphant campaign in 1992 when they scripted a sensational turnaround to win the title.

However, following Pakistan's heavy loss against India on June 16, hope seems to be waning for the side. Mohammad Amir was the lone warrior in the bowling department against India and their batting and fielding, too, was a big let down once again. Senior player Shoaib Malik, who has not been among the runs so far, is not expected to get another game in his last competition before he retires from ODI cricket.

South Africa, too, have not learnt from their mistakes in what has been a disappointing campaign. They did have their moments in the previous game against New Zealand but let the Kane Williamson-led side off the hook and paid the price for it. Leggie Imran Tahir and batsman J P Duminy will retire from ODIs after the conclusion of the team's campaign here.

It will also be the first match at the Lord's in the World Cup and it remains to be seen how the pitch will play.

Ready to hold talks with Indian govt, resolve issues: Pak Foreign Minister

Pakistan is ready to hold talks with the new Indian government to resolve all outstanding issues, Foreign Minister Shah Mehmood Qureshi has said.

Addressing an Iftar dinner in Multan on Saturday, Qureshi said both India and Pakistan should sit on negotiation table to solve issues for the sake of prosperity and peace of the region, state-run Radio Pakistan reported.

His remarks came two days after Prime Minister Narendra Modi led his Bharatiya Janata Party towards a super-sized victory for a second term in office.

Pakistan Prime Minister Imran Khan on Thursday congratulated Modi on his electoral triumph and expressed desire to work with him for peace and prosperity in the region.

"I congratulate Prime Minister Modi on the electoral victory of BJP and allies. Look forward to working with him for peace, progress and prosperity in South Asia," Khan tweeted in both English and Urdu.

In April, Khan said he believed there may be a better chance of peace talks with India and settle the Kashmir issue if Modi's party wins the general elections.

The results of India's general elections are very significant for Pakistan as the new government in New Delhi will determine the course of Indo-Pakistan ties, which were pushed to a new low after the Pulwama terror attack.

Just a day before the announcement of results, Qureshi and his Indian counterpart Sushma Swaraj on Wednesday exchanged pleasantries on the sidelines of the Shanghai Cooperation Organisation Council of Foreign Ministers' meeting in Bishkek, Kyrgyzstan. He conveyed to her Pakistan's desire to resolve all issues through dialogue.

Tensions flared up between India and Pakistan after a suicide bomber of Pakistan-based Jaish-e-Muhammed (JeM) killed 40 CRPF personnel in Kashmir's Pulwama district on February 14.

Amid mounting outrage, the Indian Air Force (IAF) carried out a counter-terror operation, hitting the biggest JeM training camp in Balakot, deep inside Pakistan on February 26. The next day, Pakistan Air Force retaliated and downed a MiG-21 in an aerial combat and captured an IAF pilot, who was handed over to India.

Pak moves a step closer to IMF bailout package after Imran overhauls team

Pakistan moved a step closer to concluding a financial aid package with the International Monetary Fund after Prime Minister Imran Khan overhauled his economic team and chose a former official from the Washington-based lender as governor of the nation’s central bank.

Reza Baqir -- who served in senior positions at the IMF in past 18 years, including as the fund’s resident representative in Egypt -- was named head of the State Bank of Pakistan at the weekend. His predecessor Tariq Bajwa was fired along with the chief of the tax-collecting agency, Mohammad Jehanzeb Khan. Earlier in April, Finance Minister Asad Umar stepped down and was replaced by Abdul Hafeez Shaikh, a former World Bank official, as the prime minister’s adviser.

Shaikh and Baqir’s experience mean they “would be in a better position to translate the IMF’s message and communicate between the government and the fund comparatively easily,” said Muhammad Arif Habib, chief executive of Arif Habib Corporation.

Pakistan needs the financial aid to ease a balance-of-payment crisis triggered by high fiscal and current-account deficits and dwindling foreign exchange reserves. The South Asian nation has already taken 12 IMF support packages since the 1980s.

Loan Talks. Shaikh is now negotiating what he called a reasonable loan package with the IMF’s team, led by mission chief Ernesto Ramirez Rigo, who is currently in Islamabad for talks with officials. Negotiations with the IMF have stalled twice in the past over various disagreements, such as the exchange rate policy. The IMF wants Pakistan to raise its tax-to-GDP ratio significantly and contain losses at public enterprises in order to plug financial gaps.

Pakistan’s credit score was downgraded by S&P Global Ratings in February, which cited a weak economic outlook and the delay in securing an IMF bailout. The rupee weakened 18 percent in the past year, the worst-performing currency in Asia, while the benchmark KSE-100 Index of stocks lost 15 percent and closed Friday at the lowest level in almost three years.

Despite seeking financial help from friendly nations like China, Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates, Khan’s economic worries aren’t over. The government is facing slower economic growth and weak revenue collection, limiting its ability to spend. The administration is due to unveil its first budget later this month or early in June.

The funds secured so far “still appear insufficient to place Pakistan’s external financing on a sound footing over the medium term,” said Jeremy Zook, associate director at Fitch Ratings Ltd. in Hong Kong. “Reserves have continued to decline and gross financing needs remain elevated.”

An IMF agreement could attract more stable financing by opening options for budget support from multilateral lenders and improve access to bilateral sources and global capital markets, he said.