China and Pakistan signed an agreement here Friday on an "early harvest" preferential tariff program for the Free Trade Area between the two countries.

 

According to the agreement, 486 categories of Chinese goods exported to Pakistan will enjoy the zero-tariff treatment, relating mainly to vegetables, fruit, stone materials, textile machinery and organic chemical products.

 

Meanwhile, China will give zero-tariff treatment to 769 categories of goods imported from Pakistan, mainly involving vegetables, fruit, stone materials, cotton fabric and man-made fabric.

 

The two countries will start the tariff reduction process on Jan. 1, 2006, and the tariffs are expected to reach zero by Jan. 1, 2008.

 

From that same date, China will also cut its tariffs by 27 percent on 1,671 kinds of products from Pakistan, and Pakistan will cut tariff by an average range of 22 percent on 575 kinds of products from China.

 

The "early harvest" program is the first step to establish Sino-Pakistan Free Trade Area, said Chinese Minister of Commerce Bo Xilai at the signing ceremony, which was also attended by Pakistan Minister of Commerce Humayun Akhtar Khan.

 

The negotiations on the Sino-Pakistan Free Trade Area were kicked off in April this year, when Chinese Premier Wen Jiabao visited Pakistan.

(Xinhua News Agency December 9, 2005)