China will provide about $1 billion in soft loans for three new road projects along the western route of the China-Pakistan Economic Corridor, connecting the "shortest route from Gwadar to China", a senior Pakistani official said.

Syed Murad Ali Shah, chief minister of Pakistan's southeastern Sindh province, said China will invest in new roads and factories to help smaller Pakistani provinces integrate into the project.

The eastern and western routes of the China-Pakistan Economic Corridor "should operate like two legs of a body," said Shah. However, more investment and opportunities have gone into the eastern route, where most of the country's industrial and financial sectors are located, he said.