look news india
Mumbai: India has begun a review of the 14-year-old free trade agreement (FTA) with the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN), which was signed in August 2009 and came into force in 2010.
Special attention is being given to various products, especially those products where tax rates on raw materials are higher than those on finished products. Government sources said the review is being done to remove some imbalances, the brunt of which the country's manufacturers are suffering.
Disparities in import duties, rules of origin and non-tariff barriers will be examined. Sources said that the Ministry of Commerce and Industry has also sought information from the country's industries about the inverted duty structure, which is causing losses to the manufacturers. India's trade deficit with ASEAN countries, which was $5 billion in FY 2010-11, will increase to $43.60 billion in FY 2023, 13 years after the trade agreement.
The ten-member ASEAN also includes Dar es Salaam, Thailand, Malaysia, Vietnam, Singapore, the Philippines, Indonesia, Cambodia, Laos and Myanmar. An official from India's commerce ministry had earlier said there was a need.
Import of laptops, IT hardware, telecom equipment, stainless steel products etc. from ASEAN countries to India has increased. Imports from countries like Thailand, Malaysia, Vietnam, Singapore are increasing. The trade balance under the agreement has so far been in favor of ASEAN. Apart from the increase in trade deficit, the government is also concerned by reports of goods being smuggled into India through non-ASEAN countries as well as ASEAN countries.