IANS | 28 Oct, 2023
Commerce and Industry Minister Piyush Goyal on Saturday held
bilateral talks on trade and investment in separate meetings with Japan
Trade Minister Nishimura Yasutoshi and the UK Secretary of State for
Business and Trade Kemi Badenoch in Osaka.
Held a meeting with
@Nishy03 , Minister of Economy, Trade and Industry, Japan, on the
sidelines of the G7 Trade Ministers' Meeting in Osaka.
Deliberated
on adding further impetus to India-Japan trade & investment ties
across diverse sectors, Goyal said in post on social media platform X.
Both ministers are in Japan for the Group of Seven (G7) trade ministers meeting in Osaka.
The
bilateral trade between the two countries has surged after signing of
the CEPA and crossed US$20.0 billion in FY2022, However, India’s trade
deficit has nearly doubled with Japan in a span of 11 years to US$8.2
billion.
India's imports from Japan depicted a CAGR growth of 1.6
percent while India’s exports to Japan declined by 0.3 per cent from
2012 to 2022.
Both the governments are working towards a mutually
beneficial trade relationship with the Government of India emphasising
on the 'Make in India' campaign, the PLI scheme, and the diversification
of the trade basket, etc., to strengthen its manufacturing sector and
make it more competitive. This will aid in increasing its contribution
to exports.
Goyal also said on X that he discussed the progress of
India-UK free trade agreement negotiations with UK Secretary of State
for Business and Trade Kemi Badenoch.
The issues being discussed include goods, services, investments and intellectual property rights.
India
is seeking greater access for its skilled professionals from sectors
like IT, and healthcare in the UK market, besides market access for
several goods at nil customs duty
On the other hand, the UK wants a
significant cut in customs duties duties on goods such as Scotch
whiskey, automobiles and certain confectionary items such as chocolates.
Goyal
also brought up the issue of giving developing countries a fair deal in
global trade in another meeting with the Director General of the WTO in
Osaka.