Pakistan business leaders are desperate for the government to allow imports of manufacturing materials held up at the key port of Karachi into the country. They warn that a failure to lift a ban on imports will leave millions jobless.
The government has banned all but essential food and medicine imports until a financial bailout is agreed with the International Monetary Fund (IMF).
Industries such as steel, textiles and pharmaceuticals are hardly functioning, forcing thousands of factories to close and increasing unemployment.
The steel industry has warned of severe supply-chain issues caused by a shortage of scrap metal, which is melted down and turned into steel bars. In the past few weeks, the bars have reached record prices.