NEW DELHI: In a clear sign that India and the US are close to finding
common ground on their outstanding trade issues that started looking
intractable, Commerce and Industry Minister Piyush Goyal recently said
here that the two sides “have almost resolved the broad contours” of an
imminent deal in this regard. He even hinted at a “much larger
engagement between the two countries in the days ahead”, hinting at the
possibility of a larger bilateral trade agreement, following the limited
deal on the immediate horizon.
This is perhaps the first time New Delhi is making it unambiguously
clear that the differences between the two sides on a host of trade
issues have indeed narrowed down. A limited deal was expected to be
announced when Prime Minister Narendra Modi met US President Donald
Trump on Sept. 24
but that was not to be, as both sides practically stuck to their
positions. India’s exports to the US, its largest market, touched $52.4
billion in 2018-19, while imports were to the tune of $35.5 billion. Its
trade surplus with the US has been shrinking in the past two years, as
it has stated importing oil and gas from the largest economy, something
that India has been highlighting. According to the US Government data,
New Delhi’s trade surplus with Washington eased to $21.3 billion in 2018
from $22.9 billion in 2017. In contrast, China’s trade surplus with the
US widened further to a record $419.2 billion last year from $375.6
billion in 2017, despite the tariff war between the top two economies.
On the 16-nation Regional Comprehensive Economic Partnership (RCEP),
Goyal said that the government would protect the interests of domestic
industry before entering into the proposed mega free-trade pact, which
is in the last phase of negotiations.
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