India-UAE trade agreement will benefit both sides by increasing market access
new Delhi:
Commerce Minister Piyush Goyal has said that the Comprehensive Free Trade Agreement signed between India and the United Arab Emirates will help two-way commerce reach $100 billion in the next five years, and also facilitate millions of jobs in both the countries.
The minister told reporters that the agreement, called the Comprehensive Economic Partnership Agreement (CEPA), is likely to come into force in May and will open doors for almost 90 per cent of products of interest to India for export to the UAE from day one. After the signing of the agreement on Friday.
Mr Goyal and UAE Minister of Economy Abdullah bin Touq Al-Marie signed the agreement during a virtual summit hosted by Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Abu Dhabi’s Crown Prince Sheikh Mohamed bin Zayed Al Nahyan. The two countries also unveiled a roadmap for expanding overall ties.
The agreement will provide significant benefits to Indian and UAE businesses, including increased market access and lower tariffs. It is expected that CEPA will increase bilateral trade from the current $60 billion to $100 billion over the next five years.
In September last year, India and the UAE formally started negotiations for a trade agreement. Negotiations for the 881-page deal were concluded in a record 88 days in December.
Mr Goyal described the trade deal as comprehensive and “balanced”.
CEPA will create one million jobs in labour-intensive sectors such as textiles, handlooms, gems and jewellery, leather and footwear and give a huge boost to exports in the UAE market.
In the pharma sector, Mr Goyal said that UAE has agreed that Indian made medical products approved by EU, UK, Canada or Australia will get market access and regulatory approval within 90 days of submission of application .
While the UAE has agreed to do away with duty on Indian jewellery, India will waive the duty on imports of up to 200 tonnes of gold.
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