Morocco, Pakistan to sign a preferential accord

A Moroccan business delegation, that visited Pakistan from January 31 to February 4, has agreed with Pakistani officials to hold next April an experts' meeting in the prospect of signing a preferential agreement between the two countries in June 2005.

The delegation, led by Foreign Trade Minister, Mustapha Mechahouri, held several meetings with Pakistani officials on means to develop trade exchanges and reinforce partnership between the two countries, especially in tourism, the Moroccan Foreign Ministry said in a release.

Exchanges between the two countries represented only 0.36pc of the overall value of Morocco's foreign exchanges during the 11 latest months, that is 796 million Dhs (around US $93.6 million).

Morocco's exports to Pakistan remain weak and not diversified. They mainly consist of phosphoric acid, phosphates, scraps iron, sheet metal, and lead ore which represented 98pc of Moroccan exports to the Asian country in 2003.

Morocco's economic mission to Pakistan aimed at reinforcing economic and trade cooperation, prospecting new markets and promoting investments.