STC NEWS MONITORING DESK
SRINAGARS, APRIL 29 (STC): Believe it or not! It’s true. Despite trade suspension, millions of dollars of Indian goods reach Pakistan without crossing the international border.
A report by web portal web.com quoting Georgia Tech Research Institute (GTRI), one of the popular methods is third-country transshipment via global ports like Dubai, Singapore, and Colombo.
According to the GTRI goods from India are sent to Dubai, Singapore and Colombo and stored in bonded warehouses. As the goods are in storage – still duty-free their labels and documents are changed, says the report.
“The products are re-exported to Pakistan under a new ‘country of origin’ say, UAE instead of India,” Srivastava, the founder of GTRI said.
Notably, this system, which is actually a loophole, bypasses the trade restriction and also provides better prices even after re-export markups. This system allows for plausible deniability of official trade, while commerce continues informally.
As per GTRI, Indian goods, including auto parts, worth USD 100,000 were shipped to Dubai. These goods then relabeled and re-exported to Pakistan for USD130,000.
“This grey-zone strategy highlights how trade adapts faster than policy,” mentions the report.
“Supply chains bend, not break especially when there’s demand on the other side,” he added.
India’s exports to Pakistan from April to January 2024-25 totaled approx USD447.65 million, resulting in a significant trade surplus. While India imported only USD42 million worth of goods from Pakistan during the same period, the Georgia Tech Research Institute (GTRI) estimates the total value of goods reaching Pakistan from various sources to be over USD10 billion. (STC)