The US today said there is "much potential" for increasing bilateral trade with India and the country needs to further improve its business environment and liberalise its economy to attract investments.
US Trade Representative Michael Froman, who is leading a high-level delegation here for the 10th India-US Trade Policy Forum meeting, said the country is proud to be India's top trading partner and in 2015 their bilateral trade was over USD 109 billion.
"US is the number one destination for India's exports purchasing more than 15 per cent of all Indian goods and services exports. India has a USD 30 billion trade surplus with the US, largest surplus it has with any country. But for economies of our size, 17 trillion dollars for the US, 2 trillion dollars for India, there remains much potential," Froman said addressing a conference here.
Pointing out that businesses are keenly sensitive to the business environment while taking investment decisions, he said there needs to be continued work on improving the business environment if India wants to attract the kind of investment, domestic and foreign, that meets its aspirations.
"India's has recently seen a positive trend in investment activity but it should not be complacent," Froman said.
"To be home of globally competitive businesses and to ensure that Indian consumers fully access the benefits of the world economy, India should continue down the path opening its economy," he added.
The US also asked India to adopt a comprehensive intellectual property protection policy saying it would be the key for development of robust knowledge-based economy.
Froman said reforms under the national IPR policy will be fundamental to preserving and promoting the innovation that characterises the Indian industry.
Froman talked about how India and the US have focused on
common interests like enforcement of copyrights and protection of trade secrets while discussing intellectual property rights in the last couple of years.
"Whether it is Bollywood or Hollywood we both care about the enforcement of copyright. We both have interest in protecting trade secrets particularly protecting our small and medium sized businesses having their innovative trade secrets. These are areas that we can cooperate on," Froman said.
Besides, he said, India's relatively high tariffs and continued requests for exemptions from global trade rules slows the country's participation amidst the global economy.
"India's efforts to renegotiate and weaken some of its existing agreements is concerning, particularly at a time when other emerging markets such as China and Vietnam are working to attract investment by negotiating higher standard agreements," Froman said.
He mentioned that although there are "still a number of issues that need to be addressed" the Indian government has taken critical steps in that direction which is reflected in the enthusiasm of the domestic and foreign business community.
Froman said interests of India and the US are increasingly aligned in counter terrorism and cyber security, food security, public health, climate change, clean energy and geopolitical stability.
The US Trade Representative said: "We look forward to a future marked by our successes and in which we realize the full potential of our relationship".
"Liberalizing the retail, financial services and professional services sectors would help create an open, non-discriminatory and predictable regime that enhances the development of those markets and the quality of life of the Indian people," Froman said.
He said the digital economy has fundamentally altered the nature of trade, noting that the digital marketplace will play an increasingly central role in the overall flow of goods and services.
"The United States and India have strong mutual interests in this regard and could together lead the world in promulgating new trade rules that benefit innovators - rules that prohibit customs duties and discrimination for digital products, ensure the free flow of data and combat localization requirements, and protect both the consumer and the integrity of the Internet," the US Trade Representative said.
