Pakistan will not retaliate against Trump tariffs, says Aurangzeb

ISLAMABAD: Finance Minister Muhammad Aurangzeb has stated that Pakistan has no intention of retaliating against the tariffs imposed by the Donald Trump administration.

In an interview with the BBC, the finance minister acknowledged that Pakistan is indeed concerned about the Trump-era tariffs as they have created an atmosphere of uncertainty.

“We all need to think about how to move forward in this new world order, and I believe it is essential to engage in dialogue on this matter,” he said.

Responding to a question, Muhammad Aurangzeb clarified that if the question is whether Pakistan plans to respond with countermeasures, the answer is no.

Addressing concerns over Pakistan potentially suffering amid the ongoing US-China trade tensions, the finance minister noted that the United States has long been a strategic partner in trade and other sectors, but relations with China are equally important for Pakistan.

Read more: US excludes smartphones, computers from Trump’s reciprocal tariffs

It is worth noting that last week, former US President Donald Trump announced the imposition of new tariffs on several countries, initially including a 29% tariff on Pakistani exports.

However, following a recent announcement, the implementation of these tariffs has been postponed for 90 days, although all countries will still face a minimum tariff of 10%.

Meanwhile, Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif recently stated that Pakistan will send a high-level delegation to Washington to engage in discussions on tariffs and trade matters.