March 26, 2018
India and China to continue to take forward the initiatives identified in the Five Year Development Programme for Economic and Trade Cooperation signed in September 2014
At the meeting, India and China discussed trade imbalance and market access for Indian products and services into China; China is currently India’s largest foreign trade partner
The Chinese to accelerate market access for Indian agricultural products pertaining to non-basmati rice, soya-meals, fruits and vegetables and bovine meat, expeditiously
The two sides reaffirmed their aim to promote bilateral trade in the field of pharmaceuticals including resolution of issues of Indian pharma products exports to Chinese markets
The eleventh session of the China-India joint group on economic relations, bilateral trade and science and technology cooperation was held on March 26th, 2018, in New Delhi. The critical session was co-chaired by India’s Minister of Commerce and Industry and Civil Aviation, Suresh Prabhu, and the Minister of Commerce of the People’s Republic of China, Zhong Shan. One the occasion, both the parties reaffirmed and reiterated their commitments to promote a balanced and sustainable bilateral trade. India and China also agreed to continue to take forward the initiatives identified in the Five Year Development Programme for Economic and Trade Cooperation signed in September 2014.
At the meeting, India and China discussed trade imbalance (over US$50 billion trade deficit) and market access for Indian products and services into China. The nations aim to address these concerns through the framework provided by successive joint economic groups and the five year trade cooperation deal. The Chinese side reaffirmed their commitment to accelerate the provision of market access for Indian agricultural products pertaining to non-basmati rice, rape-seed meals, soya-meals, pomegranate and pomegranate arils, okra, banana and other fruits and vegetables and bovine meat expeditiously. At US$71.5 billion as of 2016, China is currently India’s largest foreign trade partner.
At the meet, the two sides reaffirmed their aim to promote bilateral trade in the field of pharmaceuticals including resolution of issues of Indian pharma products exports to Chinese markets. The Ministers agreed to draw up a medium and long term roadmap with action points and timelines for increasing bilateral trade between the two countries in a balanced and sustainable manner. While the two countries are the largest emerging economies of the world with 35 per cent of the world’s population and around 20 per cent of the world’s GDP, the relative volume of bilateral trade is less than 1 per cent of global trade. This opens up opportunities for steady expansion in balanced bilateral trade.
Ahead of Mr Prabhu’s visit, Indian and Chinese companies have signed deals worth nearly US$2.4 billion. India and China have agreed to strengthen cooperation within WTO, and other multilateral and regional frameworks, to preserve their common interest in bilateral as well as global trade relations.