EXPANSION OF TRADE
WITH CHINA, JAPAN UNDERWAY
It has been the continuous
endeavour of the government to expand trade relations with China
and Japan. The areas in which India’s trade relations have been
strengthened with these countries include iron ore, electrical
goods, cashew, organic & inorganic chemicals, primary &
semi-finished iron &steel, processed minerals, manufacture
of metals etc. The new items identified for expansion of trade
include shrimps and prawns, cuttle fish, oil cakes, granite, insecticides,
meat of bovine animals, coffee, black tea, sesame seed etc. In
the recent past a Record Note of Discussions was signed with the
Chinese delegation which visited India in connection with the
conclusion of Sanitary & Phyto-Sanitary (SPS) Protocol.
Among other countries,
India and USA signed a document on the formation of terms of reference
for the India-United States Commercial Dialogue on March 23, 2000
in New Delhi to (a) facilitate trade (b) maximize investment opportunities
across a broad range of economic sectors, including information
technology, infrastructure, biotechnology and services. During
the visit of Prime Minister to USA in November 2001, both sides
have agreed to resume and expand the bilateral economic dialogue,
including Commercial Dialogue and Working Group on Trade Policy.
The Russian Federation
(Russia) is our major trading partner out of the newly formed
States of the erstwhile USSR. The main commodities of export to
Russia are ready-made garments (RMG) cotton, drugs, pharmaceuticals
& fine chemicals, tea, coffee, transport equipments, processed
minerals, RMG of other textile material, cotton yarn, fabrics,
made ups, tobacco, RMG wool, RMG manmade fibres etc. The main
items of import from Russia are iron & steel, fertilizers,
non-ferrous metals, newsprint, machinery, synthetic & reclaimed
rubber, organic chemicals, inorganic chemicals, primary steel
etc. During the 8th Session of Indo-Russian Working
Group on Trade & Economic Cooperation held at New Delhi on
5th and 6th February 2002, both sides agreed
to take necessary measures to ensure sustainable growth and continued
diversification of mutual trade.
Both UK and Germany
are important members of EU. India and the EU are engaged in a
continuous dialogue at different levels for addressing the various
trade issues. Trade and business representatives of both sides
are also in touch with each other to facilitate expansion of bilateral
trade and investment between India and EU countries. Three India-EU
Business Summits have been held so far for enhancement of bilateral
trade and investment relations. A joint sectoral study by trade/industry
representatives of both sides has been undertaken to address the
issues and concerns in priority sectors. The areas covered by
the study are food processing, mechanical engineering, IT &
telecom and financial services, textiles, power/energy and biotechnology.
