Monday 17 July 2017

TPP AND INDIA: LESSONS FOR FUTURE GAINS BY HARSHA VARDHANA SINGH

New Brookings India Working Paper
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Till 2015, the Trans Pacific Partnership (TPP) was seen as a game-changer in the evolving international trade regulatory regime. It was evident, as expressed by India’s Foreign Trade Policy 2015-2020, that it would not be possible for the country to accept the emerging agreement.
The future of TPP is now uncertain, with the US, the largest economy in the TPP, withdrawing from the agreement. This is of some relief to India because the TPP would have eroded India’s access to certain key international markets.
The present situation, however, gives more than just relief: it creates several important opportunities for India. The text of the TPP agreement provides a template for potentially helping India with its domestic policy reform, its regional or multilateral collaborative initiatives (e.g. for regulatory coherence), and even with some ideas to mitigate the concerns arising in trade negotiations at the regional or WTO level.
India’s concern with trade negotiations is largely with respect to tariff negotiations. In the case of TPP, the large tariff decline agreed under the negotiations would be impossible for India to accept. In this context, it is interesting that the TPP agreement also provides examples of a number of flexibilities to protect domestic industries if required, subject to specified conditions. Further, the extent of flexibility could be augmented by considering the various types of solutions agreed under TPP, ranging from soft disciplines (such as guidelines or best-effort agreement), to much more legally binding disciplines underlying the large tariff reduction by member counties.
These possibilities could be examined to provide possible models or starting point for seeking flexibilities that may lead to mutually acceptable solutions in trade negotiations for areas which otherwise would be a serious concern for India.
Like other products of the Brookings Institution India Center, this paper is intended to contribute to discussion and stimulate debate on important issues. The views are those of the author(s).

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SAGAR MEDIA VIDEO NEWS MAY 2017

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EUROPEAN UNION & INDIA ESTABLISH AN INVESTMENT FACILITATION MECHANISM

New Delhi, 14th July, 2017: European Union (EU) and India today announced the establishment of an Investment Facilitation Mechanism (IFM) for EU Investments in India. The mechanism will allow for a close coordination between the European Union and the Government of India with an aim to promote and facilitate EU investment in India.
This agreement builds on the Joint Statement of the 13th EU-India Summit held in Brussels in March 2016, where the EU had welcomed India’s readiness to establish such a mechanism and leaders from both sides had reaffirmed their shared commitment to oppose protectionism and to work in favour of a fair, transparent and rule-based trade and investment environment.
As part of the IFM, the EU Delegation to India and the Department of Industrial Policy and Promotion (DIPP), Ministry of Commerce & Industry, agreed to hold regular high level meetings to assess and facilitate “ease of doing business” for EU investors in India. This will include identifying and putting in place solutions to procedural impediments faced by EU companies and investors in establishing or running their operations in India.
Stressing the importance of this initiative, Tomasz Koslowski, Ambassador of the European Union to India said, “The establishment of the Investment Facilitation Mechanism is a right step in the direction of strengthening the trade and investment ties between the EU and India. The EU is the largest foreign investor in India and this initiative helps ensuring a more robust, effective and predictable business environment for the EU investors. At the last Summit in March 2016, leaders of both sides decided to create a new momentum in our relations. We are delivering on this.”
DIPP Secretary Ramesh Abhishek said, “Ease of doing business is a fundamental priority of our Government’s Make in India Campaign and the establishment of IFM for facilitating EU investments in India is another step to achieve this goal. The IFM has been established with the key objectives of paving the way for identifying and solving problems faced by EU companies and investors with regard to their operations in India.  The IFM will cover new investors as well as those already established in India. The IFM is also going to serve as a platform for discussing general suggestions from the point of view of EU companies and investors with regard to ease of doing business in India, which I am sure, would boost and encourage the EU investors to avail the  investment opportunities available in India”.
Invest India, the official Investment Promotion and Facilitation Agency of the Government of India, will also be part of the Mechanism. It will create a single-window entry point for EU companies that need assistance for their investments at the central or state level. The DIPP will also facilitate participation of other relevant ministries and authorities on a case-to-case basis.
Trade and Investment are key elements of the EU-India Strategic Partnership launched in 2004. Along with being the first trade partner in goods and services, EU is one of the biggest provider of foreign investment in India, with a stock exceeding USD 81.52 billion as of March 2017. There are currently more than 6,000 EU companies present in India, providing direct and indirect employment to over 6 million people.
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