KEY POINTS
- BRI spans nearly 150 countries; Pakistan hosts the flagship corridor.
- CPEC is worth over $62bn; Gwadar is a strategic hub.
- Pakistan–China trade hit $23.1bn in 2024; deficit tilted toward China.
- Agricultural exports to China crossed $1bn with a surplus.
- Future focus: green, digital, and private-led BRI projects.
As China’s Belt and Road Initiative (BRI) enters its second decade, Pakistan remains one of its most strategically important partners, serving as the launchpad for Beijing’s most ambitious regional corridor.
The China–Pakistan Economic Corridor (CPEC), the flagship of the BRI, continues to underscore Pakistan’s central positioning in the evolving geo-economic landscape.
Since its formal launch in 2013, the BRI has expanded to include nearly 150 countries across Asia, Europe, Africa, and Latin America, according to the Green Finance & Development Centre (2025).
Within this network, Pakistan’s role is distinct: not only as a transit hub linking western China to the Arabian Sea, but also as a test case for China’s model of large-scale connectivity and investment abroad.
At the core of this partnership is CPEC, valued at more than US $62 billion in cumulative commitments as per the Ministry of Planning, Pakistan/CPEC Authority, covering a wide range of infrastructure projects including highways, energy plants, ports, and industrial zones.
The development of Gwadar Port, often described as the “jewel in the crown” of CPEC, has become emblematic of Pakistan’s geo-economic potential to connect Central Asia, the Middle East, and beyond.
For Beijing, Gwadar provides critical access to the Arabian Sea and secures an alternative trade route that bypasses chokepoints like the Strait of Malacca.
The trade relationship underscores these dynamics. In 2024, Pakistan–China bilateral trade reached US$23.1 billion, with China’s exports to Pakistan standing at US$20.2 billion and imports from Pakistan at US$2.8 billion, according to China Briefing, a business and investment news platform published by Dezan Shira & Associates, a professional services firm specialising in foreign direct investment in Asia.
For the 2024–25 fiscal year, Pakistan’s exports to China stood at US $2.38 billion, while imports from China reached US $16.31 billion, making Beijing Islamabad’s top import partner as per the Daily CPEC, 2025.
Despite an imbalance tilted heavily in China’s favour, Pakistan has made notable gains in agricultural exports, with bilateral agricultural trade crossing US$1 billion in 2024 and Pakistan recording a surplus in that sector, according to Pakistani media.
Looking ahead, Pakistan is positioned to benefit from Beijing’s reorientation of the BRI. By 2021, cumulative Chinese investment under the initiative had reached around US $843 billion worldwide, according to China Diplomacy.
In its next phase, Beijing is increasingly prioritising smaller, sustainable projects, digital connectivity, and private-sector partnerships, as published by AP News in 2023.
For Islamabad, this opens the door to attract investment in renewable energy, high-tech infrastructure, and logistics networks, building on its established CPEC foundation.
The evolving focus could also create opportunities for regional integration, particularly in South Asia and Central Asia, where Pakistan’s location provides natural leverage.
Yet challenges remain. Political uncertainty, fiscal vulnerabilities, and security concerns continue to weigh on the speed and scale of implementation.
Moreover, the widening trade deficit highlights the need for Pakistan to boost competitiveness and capacity in order to maximise its gains from the partnership.
Despite these headwinds, analysts agree that Pakistan’s role in the BRI remains irreplaceable. Its geography, linking East and West, and its deep strategic partnership with Beijing, ensure that it will remain at the centre of the initiative’s future trajectory.
In the shifting balance of geo-economics, Pakistan is not merely a participant in the BRI but a frontline state shaping its outcome.
