Pakistan asks China to help set up semiconductor zone

Pakistan is finding out ways to overcome financial challenges and has sought China's help to build a semiconductor zone in the country to boost its self-sufficiency in modern gadgets.

This is a key announcement made by Pakistan's Information and Broadcasting Minister Fawad Chaudhry as Pakistan's economy is stagnant and the Imran Khan government is eyeing to increase the Foreign Direct Investment (FDI) in every way possible.

Imran Khan's China visit -- first in the last two years -- points to Islamabad's financial dependence on Beijing, especially as the West continues to ignore Pakistan.

"We want Chinese tech companies to come to Pakistan and make Pakistan a hub of semiconductors manufacturing," Fawad said in his interview with China Economicnet, reported the New International.

The Imran Khan government is also considering requesting China to approve another loan to the tune of USD 3 billion in China's State Administration of Foreign Exchange, known as SAFE deposits.

His China visit has raised several questions on whether China has provided the much-needed funds that Pakistan needs.

However, both the governments are tight-lipped on this and one commentator observed that Khan had gone "seeking a loan, not a medal" to China.

Imran Khan, during a series of meetings with the executives of Chinese state-owned and private corporate sectors, underlined that Pakistan was offering a conducive environment for investment in Special Economic Zones (SEZs) under the China Pakistan Economic Corridor (CPEC).

According to a report, the humongous difference between China and Pakistan's economies and the Sino-Pak ties equip the Chinese to explore and capture the Pakistani market at the cost of the local enterprises.

( With inputs from ANI )

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