Bilateral Economic Relations

Pakistan is the fifth largest country in the world by population and the 42nd  largest economy
in 2019.   The United States is Pakistan’s largest export destination country, while China is
Pakistan’s largest import partner.  U.S.-Pakistan trade in 2019 stood at $6.5 billion, with
Pakistan running a modest surplus of $1.3 billion.  The United States has been one of the
top investors in Pakistan over the last two decades, with major U.S. investments
concentrated in consumer goods, chemicals, energy, agriculture, business process out-
sourcing, transportation, and communications.  In his July 2019 meeting with Pakistani
Prime Minister Imran Khan, President Trump called for a dramatic expansion of U.S.-
Pakistan commercial ties.  Since then, the U.S. government has worked to operationalize
that vision through enhanced bilateral economic coordination.  In February 2020,
Commerce Secretary Wilbur Ross met with senior Pakistani officials in Islamabad to
discuss how to deepen trade and investment ties; and in July 2020, U.S. International
Development Finance Corporation CEO Adam Boehler paid a similar visit to discuss
potential investment support for development projects.  However, Pakistan’s significant
business climate issues, including regulatory barriers, weak intellectual property
protections, and discriminatory taxation, have impeded U.S. firms from operating in the
country.  Pakistan has made some progress address with its recent economic reforms,
ranking 108 in the World Bank‘s Ease of Doing Business rankings in 2019, a 28-slot
improvement from 2018.  The United States continue to work with Pakistan to achieve
further business climate enhancements.