SME Times News Bureau | 09 Jul, 2018
Commerce Minister Suresh
Prabhu on Saturday said that the Commerce Ministry wants to include
export sector under priority sector lending.
Speaking at an event
organised by Federation of Indian Export Organisations, Suresh Prabhu
said the Commerce Ministry pitched for treating exports as a priority
sector lending.
Holding
that global trade is passing through "challenging times",
Prabhu on Saturday said the existence of World Trade Organisation
(WTO) was under threat.
According to him, WTO is "a
must" and in its absence, there will be chaos in the global
trade.
"Today, it is the most challenging time for
global trade... we never had such a challenging time. For the first
time, the existence of WTO is under threat. People are questioning
the accepted trading norms," he said here.
Citing an
example of "letter of credit", a prerequisite for exports,
Prabhu said fundamentals of global trade are "under
scrutiny".
"If you don't have WTO, not only
India, every country will have problem. We strongly feel WTO is a
must because it guarantees certain rules and regulations to run
global trade. There will be chaos if you don't have WTO."
Prabhu
said the country was trying to make the global organisation
strong.
"We are not only talking of reform of WTO and
working on how revitalise it. I personally work with important
ministers of the world and am trying to find out (the way forward)...
improving WTO is one thing and discarding it is a different thing,"
he said, adding that the country is trying to keep the organisation
alive and strong.
He said India was working on specific
bilateral relationship with various countries in Africa, Latin and
central America, Europe and Asia.
"After several
meeting with African countries, we offer them Free Trade Agreement
(FTA) and trying to find out how to make FTA with GCC countries,"
he said, adding that the country was working with the US to resolve
the trade dispute with it and had signed an agreement with China to
balance trade with the neighbouring country.
He also said
the Commerce Ministry pitched for treating exports as a priority
sector lending.
"Exports must be treated as priority
sector lending and we are talking to Finance Ministry and the Reserve
Bank of India. How do you say priority of India is export when it is
not a priority for lending?" he asked.
The
government would ensure that the country's global mission would
support exporters and for which a paper has been prepared, he
said.
"We are talking to Finance and External Affair
Ministry time and again. Promoting exports will need opening of our
missions abroad. It requires cabinet approval like Japan's Jetro or
Australia's Austrade... we must have this," he added.