Germany warns Pakistan of losing GSP+ status as economic crisis deepens

ISLAMABAD: Germany has warned Pakistan of losing its ongoing Generalised Scheme of Preferences (GSP-Plus) status as economic crisis deepened, ARY News reported on Thursday.

The German embassy has penned down a letter to Federal Minister of Economic Affairs Sardar Ayaz Sadiq, pointing out that official importers of Mercedes-Benz, BMW and Audi were facing difficulties due to country’s economic situation.

“The State Bank of Pakistan (SBP) is not allowing to open letter of credits (LCs) for import of electric cars from Germany,” the letter stated, noting that Berlin is the largest trade partner of Pakistan in the European Union (EU).

The letter maintained that the restricting import of electric cars was detrimental to Pakistan-Germany bilateral trade, adding that not allowing to open LCs is a violation of GSP+ status.

It warned that restricting the import of electric cars would be harmful for Islamabad, adding that the country may lose the GSP+ status.