Page 2 - Trade Talks

India-EU FTA: Will the marriage reconcile?

While realpolitik is not expected to result in a favourable trade agreement between India and EU, the partners would do best in settling for a more realistic agenda with some compromise from both side

US and China spar with warnings about misunderstandings and miscalculations

The United States and China butted heads over a number of contentious bilateral, regional and global issues as U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken met Friday with senior Chinese officials and warned of the dangers of misunderstandings and miscalculations. Blinken's discussions started with Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi and then Public Security Minister Wang Xiaohong, who said Blinken would also see President Xi Jinping a meeting that had been expected but not previously announced by either said. A State Department official confirmed that Blinken would meet the president before leaving the country late Friday. Talks between the two sides have increased in recent months, even as differences have grown. Blinken and Wang underscored the importance of keeping lines of communication open, but they also lamented that divisions were becoming more serious in nature. They each underscored the importance of keeping lines of communication open but they also lamented persistent and ...

Business leaders urge Pak PM Shehbaz to initiate trade talks with India

Pakistan business leaders in an interactive session with Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif urged him to initiate trade talks with India to promote business and commerce which would greatly benefit the economy of the cash-strapped country. Posing tough questions during an hour-long meeting at the Sindh CM House here in Pakistan's commercial capital on Wednesday, Karachi's business community appreciated the prime minister's determination to tackle economic issues but advised him to focus on bringing about political stability to turn around the economy. The Prime Minister sat down with the business community to find ways to uplift the economy through exports but his resolve was met with apprehensions from industry leaders who said it was almost impossible to do business under the current circumstances, particularly with high energy costs and inconsistent government policies, the Dawn newspaper reported. After the prime minister's brief speech, the house was opened for a question and answer

In the economic transformation of Southeast Asia, a tale of two FTAs

Advantages of India's FTA with ASEAN appear unclear and appear to make the country dependent on Chinese imports

Next round of talks on proposed India-Peru trade agreement likely in Jun

The chief negotiators of India and South American nation Peru are likely to hold the next rounds of talks for a proposed free trade agreement in June, an official statement said on Thursday. So far, seven rounds of talks have been completed. "The next round, expected in June 2024, will be preceded by intersessional negotiations over VC (video conference) to ensure that outstanding issues are resolved before the two parties meet again," the commerce ministry said. The seventh round of talks involved understanding priorities and mutual concerns and ensuring that the negotiations are rooted in mutual respect and benefit, it added. Commerce Secretary Sunil Barthwal said the basic principle of negotiations should be understanding strengths and respecting sensitivities of each other. The modalities of negotiation may emerge from appropriate stakeholder consultations, and feedback from the industry and the negotiating teams should engage in a gainful and explorative approach, he said. R

Global merchandise trade growth in volume terms may dip 1.2% in 2024: GTRI

The growth in the global merchandise trade is likely to decline by 1.2 per cent, in value terms, due to the ongoing geopolitical uncertainties, economic think tank Global Trade Research Initiative (GTRI) said on Thursday. The US dollar value of world merchandise trade fell 5 per cent in 2023 to USD 24.01 trillion, but this decline was mostly offset by a strong increase in commercial services trade, which rose 9 per cent to USD 7.54 trillion, it said. This allowed world goods and commercial services exports on a balance of payments basis to slip 2 per cent in 2023 to USD 30.8 trillion. "Despite the World Trade Organization (WTO) expecting a 2.6 per cent rise in trade volume for 2024, the value of world merchandise trade is still seen to decline by 1.2 per cent in 2024 from 2023, continuing the trend of trade values falling behind the trade volumes," the think tank said. The WTO has projected that the world merchandise trade volume will grow by 2.6 per cent in 2024 and 3.3 per cent i

US govt to consider concerns about China's Brite in trade sanction list

The concerns were raised in a letter calling on the agency to sanction the company after Reuters reported in December that it was part-owned by blacklisted Chinese chipmaker SMIC

US-China relationship on 'more stable footing' but more can be done: Yellen

US Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen met Sunday with Chinese Premier Li Qiang in Beijing and sent a message of mutual cooperation despite the nations' differences. Yellen came to China top of mind with trade practices that put American companies and workers at an unfair competitive disadvantage. In the ornate Fujian room of Great Hall of People building just west of Tiananmen Square, she told Li: While we have more to do, I believe that, over the past year, we have put our bilateral relationship on more stable footing." This has not meant ignoring our differences or avoiding tough conversations," she said. "It has meant understanding that we can only make progress if we directly and openly communicate with one another. Li said media interest in Yellen's visit "shows the high expectation they have ... and also the expectation and hope to grow" the US-China relationship. The meeting comes after the US and China on Saturday agreed to hold intensive exchanges on more balanced economic

Janet Yellen meets China's foreign business leaders ahead of trade talks

The Treasury is not expecting a major shift in Chinese policy as a result of meetings, but it was important to explain the problems that overinvestment in these sectors are causing around the world

Yellen heads to China to talk trade, anti-money laundering, overproduction

Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen is headed to a China determined to avoid open conflict with the United States, yet the world's two largest economies still appear to be hashing out the rules on how to compete against each other. There are tensions over Chinese government support for the manufacturing of electric vehicles and solar panels, just as the U.S. government ramps up its own aid for those tech sectors. There are differences in trade, ownership of TikTok, access to computer chips and national security all of them a risk to what has become a carefully managed relationship. The 77-year-old Yellen, a renowned economist and former Federal Reserve chair, laid out to reporters the issues that she intends to raise with her Chinese counterparts during her five-day visit. Yellen is headed to Guangzhou and Beijing for meetings with finance leaders and state officials. Her engagements will include Vice Premier He Lifeng, Chinese Central Bank Governor Pan Gongsheng, former Vice Premier Li

Cash-strapped Pakistan needs to get India onboard on trade matters

The problem is that Pakistan needs India far more than India needs Pakistan. The Indian economy is stable and India remains deeply reluctant to open its markets to other developing countries

India, EFTA ink free trade agreement; $100 bn investment target in 15 yrs

The European Free Trade Association (EFTA) members are Iceland, Liechtenstein, Norway, and Switzerland

Iceland's foreign min arrives in Delhi to boost ties in trade, investment

Sharing on social media 'X', Randhir Jaiswal stressed that Benediktsson's visit will further strengthen India-Iceland ties, including in trade and investment

WTO issues new draft deals post all-night talks, some issues unresolved

A draft agriculture deal showed that a key reform sought by India on permitted government support levels for farmers was still not agreed, with two alternative solutions sitting side by side

WTO talks deadline extended again as ministers struggle to crack deals

The final gathering, pushed back for a second time, is now set for 2 p.m. Abu Dhabi time - past the original end of Thursday evening

Red Sea attacks add urgency to alternate Mideast trade route: Govt

India has taken the first steps with the UAE to begin work on the India-Middle East-Europe Economic Corridor, or IMEC, Sunjay Sudhir said in an interview in Abu Dhabi

India closes in on trade deal with Oman as Mideast ties strengthen

The two sides started talks on the trade pact just three months ago, and their haste in completing the deal shows Prime Minister Modi's determination in building stronger links with the Middle East

'Not in dreamland': WTO aims for modest outcomes at Abu Dhabi meet

'Tough' politics complicate deal-making, says Ngozi Okonjo-Iweala, WTO chief

Abu Dhabi WTO meet: Parliamentary conference session issues final document

The document emphasises the role of parliamentarians in ratifying bilateral and multilateral trade agreements that enhance and oversee the facilitation of global trade in all industries

WTO ministerial: India's 'no' at Abu Dhabi summit may just mean 'not yet'

From the outside, it's easy to think of India as an undifferentiated mass of individuals with leaders who turn up in places such as Abu Dhabi to reject everything the rest of the world suggests