Identifier
Created
Classification
Origin
10ISLAMABAD332
2010-02-11 14:30:00
UNCLASSIFIED//FOR OFFICIAL USE ONLY
Embassy Islamabad
Cable title:  

U.S.-PAKISTAN FREE TRADE AGREEMENT: A POTENTIAL GAME CHANGER

Tags:  ECON ETRD EFIN EAGR EINV ENRG PK PREL 
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UNCLAS SECTION 01 OF 04 ISLAMABAD 000332 

SENSITIVE
SIPDIS

E.O. 12958: N/A
TAGS: ECON ETRD EFIN EAGR EINV ENRG PRELPK
SUBJ: U.S.-PAKISTAN FREE TRADE AGREEMENT: A POTENTIAL GAME CHANGER

UNCLAS SECTION 01 OF 04 ISLAMABAD 000332

SENSITIVE
SIPDIS

E.O. 12958: N/A
TAGS: ECON ETRD EFIN EAGR EINV ENRG PRELPK
SUBJ: U.S.-PAKISTAN FREE TRADE AGREEMENT: A POTENTIAL GAME CHANGER


1. (SBU) Summary and Introduction: President Zardari, Prime
Minister Gilani and Finance Minister Tarin, like many Pakistanis
before them, have pleaded with the USG for "trade, not aid." A Free
Trade Agreement (FTA) with Pakistan holds substantial opportunity
for the Pakistani economy, with small, but positive, implications
for the U.S. economy. However, the economic benefits of any
potential FTA depend on the inclusion of Pakistan's primary export:
textile goods, primarily in cotton.

2. (SBU) Our initial research conducted by Deloitte indicates that
an FTA that includes textiles would result in over 1.4 million new
jobs in Pakistan, including in impoverished regions of Southern
Punjab and Northern Sindh where militant recruitment is high. It
would double Pakistani exports to the United States, but would have
little to no impact on total U.S imports. Increased textile imports
from Pakistan would merely supplant imports from other countries.
Based upon recent experiences of other countries having bilateral
trade agreements with the United States, the multiplier effects in
terms of employment, investment, and innovation in Pakistan would
spur rapid growth across the country. Foreign direct investment
(FDI) could potentially double and Pakistan's GDP growth would be
bumped up by 1.5 percent each year.

3. (SBU) An FTA would also serve our broader interests in the
region. A U.S.-Pakistan FTA would encourage other countries in
South Asia, including possibly India, to engage with Pakistan on
trade and investment matters to benefit from Pakistan's access to
the U.S. market. It would also encourage Pakistan to conclude the
Afghanistan Pakistan Transit Trade Agreement.

4. (SBU) Embassy recommends Washington agencies analyze the
potential benefits of a free trade area with Pakistan. We are
mindful of the U.S. domestic constraints, the pending free trade
areas with other countries, and the lack of trade promotion
authority. But given Pakistan's enormous national security
importance to the United States - and Pakistan's role in our
eventual success in Afghanistan - we believe an FTA with Pakistan is
worthy of serious consideration. The FTA would reduce the burden on
our own foreign assistance budget (currently $3.5 billion a year)
and improve the U.S. image in Pakistan. The Reconstruction
Opportunity Zones (ROZs) have languished in Congress for almost
three years and have always had serious limitations in product and
geographic coverage. We believe it is time to move to something

more far-reaching and sustainable. End summary and introduction.
Pakistan's Current Trade with the United States
-------------- --


5. (SBU) The United States is Pakistan's top export market,
accounting for approximately 18.8 percent of Pakistan's total
exports in FY 2008-2009. Pakistan's exports to the U.S. reached
$3.6 billion in 2008-2009, with textiles representing 84 percent of
that total. Exports to the United States are primarily in
cotton-based textiles (home textiles and apparel including knit
shirts, denim trousers and socks) which account for over 90 percent
of Pakistan's textile exports. Tariff levels applied by the United
States to these top 61 export items range to as high as 23.5
percent.


6. (SBU) The top ten U.S. imports from Pakistan for 2008 (value and
applied tariff rate in parenthesis) are: 1) Cotton terry towels,
excluding dish towels ($282 million, 9.1 percent); 2) Cotton sheets,
printed ($207 million, 6.7 percent); 3) Men's and boy's cotton knit
shirts ($160 million, 19.7 percent); 4) Men's or boys' cotton socks
($138 million, 13.5 percent); 5) Men's and boy's cotton pullovers
($126 million, 16.5 percent); 6) Cotton terry towels, including dish
towels ($115 million, 9.1 percent); 7) Cotton sheets, not printed
($109 million, 6.7 percent); 8) Men's cotton denim trousers ($63
million, 16.6 percent); 9) Men's and boy's cotton overcoat ($74
million, 15.9 percent) and 10) Cotton bed linen knit or crocheted
($64 million, 6 percent). All the products are cotton-based.

7. (SBU) Other products that could benefit from an FTA include
leather, surgical tools, carpets, gems and jewellery, sporting
goods, cutlery and marble. Some of these goods are currently
benefiting from zero tariffs as part of the U.S. General System of
Preference (GSP) initiative, which will expire on December 31,

2010.
Other U.S. FTAs and Their Impact
--------------

ISLAMABAD 00000332 002 OF 004




8. (SBU) Currently, the United States has 9 bilateral Free Trade
Agreements (FTA) with Australia, Bahrain, Chile, Israel, Jordan,
Morocco, Oman, Peru, Singapore, and two multilateral agreements: the
Central America-Dominican Republic-United States Free Trade
Agreement (CAFTA-DR) with Costa Rica, Dominican Republic, El
Salvador, Guatemala, Honduras, Nicaragua; and the North American
Free Trade Agreement (NAFTA) with Canada and Mexico. FTAs with
Colombia, Korea and Panama are pending.

9. (SBU) Examples of FTAs in the Middle East that include U.S.
concessions on textile tariffs provide a model for an FTA with
Pakistan. In the cases of Jordan, Bahrain, and Oman, the FTAs
provide duty free or preferential treatment to more than 90 percent
of traded products including textiles and garments. A year after the
signing of its FTA in 2006, Bahrain's textile exports to the United
States increased by 19.1 percent.

10. (SBU) Apart from these FTAs, the Qualifying Industrial Zone
(QIZ) program is operating in Jordan (1998) and Egypt (2004). Since
its establishment, the Qualifying Industrial Zones program has
fostered over 800 firms in 21 Qualifying Industrial Zones, employing
over 115,000 workers and exporting over $2.25 billion, including
more than $1.25 billion in garments to the United States at the
program's peak in 2007.

11. (SBU) The FTA and Qualifying Industrial Zones programs in
Jordan bolstered reform efforts in other parts of the economy. FTA
negotiations with Jordan provided the negotiating space and economic
incentives that aligned Jordan's environmental regulation,
intellectual property rights enforcement, and labor and work-permit
requirements with international standards. In essence, the
negotiations transformed the role of Jordan's government from that
of an economic "manager" to a "regulator," a key to modernizing its
economy. Such liberalization brought substantial levels of foreign
direct investment. Jordan's foreign and domestic investment
increased by 79 percent after signing the FTA.
The Potential Impact on Pakistan's Economy
--------------


12. (SBU) Our research from Deloitte indicates that a U.S.-Pakistan
FTA eliminating tariffs on textiles would more than double Pakistani
exports to the United States from $3.6 to $6.5 billion. For this
increased trade, the textile sector would build extra capacity and
employ more workers, creating 1.4 million direct/indirect jobs in
the textile sector. The spike in employment would have a ripple
effect in other related sectors from cotton-growing farmers to the
entire logistics chain leading to the exports of textiles. Southern
Punjab and Northern Sindh, cotton-producing regions where poverty
drives extremist recruitment, stand to benefit most from the textile
export boost.


13. (SBU) According to Deloitte trade mapping, within two years of
signing an FTA, bilateral trade between the United States and
Pakistan would increase by at least 80 percent, with Pakistani
imports from the U.S. growing nearly as rapidly as exports. The
trade would bump up Pakistan's annual GDP growth by 1.5 percent.
Moreover, industrial investment and economies of scale will boost
Pakistan's overall trade with the world by 35 percent.

14. (SBU) Deloitte's preliminary investment flow analysis points to
a U.S.-Pakistan trade agreement potentially doubling foreign direct
investment in Pakistan. Such foreign direct investment would shift
Pakistan's comparative advantage to a more diverse set of products
both within the textile sector and beyond textiles. Foreign direct
investment brings with it hard capital, managerial know-how,
cutting-edge technology, and market savvy. Specifically, market
access to and foreign direct investment from the United States would
create opportunities for vertical integration between U.S. and
Pakistani firms and enhance Pakistan's capabilities in new
technologies, research and design.

15. (SBU) Moreover, an FTA would keep Pakistani capital in
Pakistan. A number of Pakistani textile firms have moved production
to Egypt, Jordan, Madagascar and Bangladesh to take advantage of
lower U.S. tariffs. An FTA would reverse that trend.

16. (SBU) The negotiating process and the economic incentives from
a U.S.-Pakistan FTA would forge a stronger economic and strategic
partnership, anchoring Pakistan's existing economic reform
commitments, and demanding further regulatory and institutional
reform. The FTA would put rules and economic incentives in place

ISLAMABAD 00000332 003 OF 004


that would strengthen Pakistan's export-oriented, market economy at
the expense of rent-seeking economic behavior. This change should
encourage job growth, promote investment, and erode the oligopolies
that currently dominate a number of key economic sectors.

17. (SBU) A U.S.-Pakistan FTA could well have a regional economic
and political impact. Pakistan's negotiations with Sri Lanka on a
bilateral trade agreement have recently come to a halt. India has
signed bilateral FTAs with Sri Lanka and Bangladesh, isolating
Pakistan within the SAARC's regional bloc. A U.S. - Pakistan FTA
will encourage other South Asian countries to sign trade and
investment agreements with Pakistan to benefit from Pakistan's
access to the U.S. market. It could potentially open up business
avenues between Pakistan and India, promoting improved relations
between the two countries. Additionally, the USG could use the
carrot of the FTA to push for the signing of the Afghanistan
Pakistan Transit Trade Agreement (APTTA).
Impact of an FTA on the United States
--------------


18. (SBU) While the U.S. is Pakistan's largest export market at
18.8 percent, these goods represent only 0.21 percent of U.S.
imports. An FTA will benefit both countries, but the relative sizes
of the two economies translate into a much bigger gain for Pakistan.
Nevertheless, U.S. exports to Pakistan stand to grow by over 80
percent.


19. (SBU) Historically, free trade agreements have increased U.S.
economic growth and employment, while perhaps counter-intuitively,
narrowing the U.S. trade deficit. In 2007, 16 percent of the
overall U.S. trade deficit resulted from trade with FTA trading
partners, compared to 84 percent attributed to trade with non-FTA
trading partners. In 2008, this trend continued with total U.S.
exports to partners growing by 8.5 percent, while imports grew by
only 6 percent. The United States has enjoyed stronger economic
growth, higher manufacturing output, and lower unemployment because
of these trade agreements.


20. (SBU) U.S. growers of grain and cotton and producers of
processed foods, chemicals, machinery and equipment (electrical and
mechanical) will gain most from free trade access to the Pakistani
market. The top 10 Pakistani imports in 2008 from the U.S. (with ad
valorem tariff applied by Pakistan in parenthesis) in 2008 were 1)
Aircrafts and parts (5 percent);2)Cotton (0 percent); 3) Wheat (10
percent); 4) Electric appliances (12.2 percent); 5) Ferrous waste
and scrap (8 percent); 6) Air vacuum pumps (11.8 percent),7)
Moving/boring/scraping machinery of earth (5 percent); 8) Turbo jets
and propellers, and gas turbines (5 percent)and 9) Machinery parts
(5 percent); 10) Automatic data processing machines(0 percent).


21. (SBU) The relaxation of U.S. textile tariffs will have little
effect on the U.S. textile industry. In 2008, Pakistan ranked
seventh among textile exporters to the United States at $3.2
billion. That same year, the top exporters (with their share in
parenthesis) of textile products to the United States were China (33
percent),India (5.7 percent),Mexico (5.5 percent),Vietnam (5.5
percent),Indonesia (4.5 percent),Bangladesh (3.7 percent) and
Pakistan (3.2 percent). An FTA would potentially double Pakistan's
share of such imports to 6 percent. Rather than increasing total
U.S. textile imports, Pakistan's marginal increase would take market
share from the top exporting countries. China and Bangladesh would
lose the most market share, as much of their cotton and other
textile inputs are currently imported from Pakistan. We believe
Mexico would be least affected due to its geographic proximity to
the United States and NAFTA.


22. (SBU) The highly automated and innovative segments of the U.S.
textile industry, such as design, industrial fabrics, carpets,
specialty yarns and textile machinery will see their exports grow
and benefit from open textile trade. However, employment in the
U.S.-based textile industry overall is expected to decline by 48
percent by 2018. The decline is primarily due to the move to more
capital-intensive manufacturing. An FTA with Pakistan would have no
discernible impact on this trend.


23. (SBU) Comment: Pakistani interlocutors - from President
Zardari to Finance Minister Tarin - have pushed the case for U.S.

ISLAMABAD 00000332 004 OF 004


"trade, not aid." The announcement of our intention to negotiate an
FTA would generate political capital. It would belie the common
Pakistani perception that the United States is not committed to a
robust, long-term relationship with Pakistan. The FTA would create
jobs and economic growth in many of the regions where militants
currently recruit unemployed young men. It would align Pakistan's
economic regulatory structure with ours and orient Pakistan's
economy to the outside world. And it would do so while bolstering
the U.S. economy, providing U.S. exporters a leg up in the Pakistani
market. For us to realize these political and economic gains, free
trade in textiles is a must: the economic significance of their
inclusion is negligible to the United States, but key for Pakistan.



24. (SBU) We are mindful of the U.S. domestic restraints to an FTA.
The Reconstruction Opportunity Zones (ROZs) have languished in
Congress for almost three years and still have serious limitations
in product and geographic coverage. An FTA is ambitious, but given
Pakistan's enormous national security importance to the United
States as well as to our prospects for success in Afghanistan, it
merits serious consideration. End Comment.


Patterson