Ambassador Haque visits Habib Bank Limited Head Office in Beijing

BEIJING, Pakistan Ambassador to China, Moin ul Haque visited the Head Office of Habib Bank Limited (HBL) here on Thursday and hoped that the bank would greatly help in the economic and financial integration between Pakistan and China.

During the visit, Ambassador Haque, accompanied by Deputy Head of Mission and other officers of the Embassy, was given a tour of different sections of the Head Office by bank’s country manager Amanda Cheng.

Farhan Talib, the regional general manager of China and Singapore gave an online briefing to the Ambassador on the bank’s performance, new financing initiatives especially in agriculture and poverty alleviation and future business plan in China.

Expressing satisfaction at the growing banking and financial ties between Pakistan and China, the Ambassador appreciated HBL’s progress and its growing share in the Chinese market.

He expressed hope that opening of two branches of HBL in China would greatly help in the economic and financial integration between the two countries.

The Ambassador highlighted that in recent years, trade and investment cooperation between Pakistan and China has expanded especially after the implementation of expanded China-Pakistan Free Trade Agreement (CPFTA) and second phase of China Pakistan Economic Corridor (CPEC) with a special focus on agriculture, science & technology and socio-economic development.

Noting that Pakistan-China bilateral trade has registered an increase of 88% in first half of this year, the Ambassador requested bank’s continued support in this area especially in expanding the cross border e-commerce market.

The Ambassador expressed hope that as the largest Pakistani bank involved in CPEC related projects and number of BRI initiatives, HBL’s strong presence in China would help in further promoting trade and investment ties between Pakistan and China.

The HBL established its representative office in China in 2005. It opened its first branch in Urumqi in 2019 while the second branch was opened in March 2021 coinciding with the 70th anniversary of establishment of diplomatic ties between Pakistan and China.