Standard Chartered promotes Gateway to ‘Belt and Road’ opportunities
Islamabad, 25 April 2018: Experts from Standard Chartered’s Greater China Region hosted road shows in Sri Lanka, Bangladesh and Pakistan to outline the benefits of and investment opportunities from China’s B&R initiative, together with Renminbi internationalisation.
The purpose of these roadshows is to enable our clients to take advantage of the benefits presented by China-led Belt & Road initiative (B&R), which is also bringing more cooperation opportunities for Pakistan and China.The B&R initiative, the biggest support to globalisation in the world today, is aiming to boost trade and investment growth across Asia, extending to the Middle East, Africa and Europe.
Trade between China and countries along the Belt and Road has been robust. Total trade between China and B&R countries exceeded USD 3trillion between 2014 and 2016, and the momentum has continued in 2017 despite subdued growth in global trade.
The B&R initiative has made significant headway in the past four years, and has gained support from more than 100 countries and international organisations, and more than 80 of them have signed cooperation agreements with China.
Shazad Dada, Chief Executive Officer, Standard Chartered Pakistan commented, “The Bank has been in Pakistan and China for more than 150 years. Our longstanding and deep-rooted presence in both countries along with 70per cent of footprint overlap with B&R countries equips us with in-depth knowledge of prevailing political, economic and cultural environments making us an indispensable partner in this extra ordinary progress. It is therefore incumbent upon us to assist our valued clients to capitalize on these enormous trade opportunities created through better connectivity between them and the rest of the world. This roadshow emphasises our promise to be ‘Here for good’, while demonstrating our capabilities in providing comprehensive set of products, services and solutions to our existing as well as prospective clients who are looking to embark upon their growth journeys along the Silk Road.”
Jean Lu, Managing Director, Head of Global Banking, CIB, Standard Chartered Bank (China) Limited commented, “The Belt and Road Initiative will benefit all countries along the routes, contributing to global economic and social development. Many countries, like Pakistan, have robust demand for infrastructures, as they move toward further industrialisation, move up the value chain, as well as absorb fast-growing populations. According to Asia Development Bank, Asia needs to invest around USD 8tn in infrastructure over 2010-20 in order to maintain its growth momentum. Improved infrastructure will foster formation of production chains at the regional level based on comparative advantage, hence improving productivity.”
