Indian Economics Thread II is locked due to a Jai Hind invasion. So I gotta post this here.
India is rushing to sign FTA with the West and Russia, but not China. Stupid, but its good news for me.
Negotiations for trade agreements are underway between India and several key economies, including the UK, US, EU, Switzerland, Norway, and the Russia-led Eurasian Economic Union (EAEU). The report suggested that India “may have completed or [is] nearing completion” of these agreements with all major economies, excluding China, by the year’s end.
As if China cares about India not signing an FTA with it. China is the world's factory that India depends on, so what if India wanna pay more for the goods that it needs.
“By forming FTAs with India, they can access the Indian market without these import duties on substantial trade. This gives their companies an advantage over others in selling to the Indian market,” observed the report.
Its making exports to India easier for these countries. Indian market is big alright, but it has been too troublesome to keep the big Western brands interested. I don't think these FTA deals would give any big results. There is still no rule of law in India.
However, the report dismisses the likelihood of a surge in India’s exports to these countries currently negotiating FTAs, as many already impose low import duties
That's right, this FTA does not help India at all with exports. These countries have already placed low import duties on Indian imports because they are not competitive. India doesn't have much to offer to these countries apart from textile, minerals, and agriculture goods.
In a separate development,
India’s FTA negotiations with Canada have been after diplomatic tensions escalated due to Ottawa linking Indian government agents to the murder of a Sikh activist near Vancouver.
LOL! Is Trudeau gonna cry about this?
