News: India may soon be Gulf's top trading partner
(IANS 26/03/2006) Muscat - With India and the six Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) countries expected to sign a Free Trade Agreement (FTA) soon, bilateral trade could surge to record levels enabling India emerge as the largest trading partner of the Gulf states.
Commerce and Industry Minister Kamal Nath said the two sides have agreed to expand the scope of the agreement to include services and investments, thus making it a Comprehensive Economic 000peration Agreement instead of just a FTA.
“We (India and GCC), at a meeting in Riyadh last week, decided to work to finalise the FTA by early 2007,” Kamal Nath said while speaking at the opening session of the two-day Second lndia-GCC Industrial Conference which opened in Muscat Saturday.
At present, the Gulf is the second largest destination for India’s exports after the US. “Indian businessmen and entrepreneurs have already put India on the global map,” he said.
“We can look forward to a proactive engagement between our trade and investment promotion institutions as well as the private sectors on both sides.”
The current value of bilateral trade, excluding oil, between GCC countries and India is around $17 bn and is expected to reach $25 bn by 2010.
In 2004-05, India’s export to the GCC was $10 bn and imports from these countries, minus oil, stood at $7 bn.
According to Kamal Nath, there is a convergence of interests between India and the GCC states in the present global environment.
His Omanese counterpart Maqbool Bin Ah Sultan said the current economic scene in the GCC states and India was conducive to strategic economic cooperation.
“India is a promising market for energy. The opportunities will continue to exist for exporting greater quantities of Gulf oil and gas to India,” he said.
Countries like India, Kamal Nath, said are seen emerging as champions of trade and economic liberalisation. For the Gulf, India is the most attractive natural partner, he said.
“The indication is that the US may lose out to India as the largest trading partner of the Gulf in future, if India explores the scope of expanding its ties with the GCC. India has all the rootstocks to enhance the bilateral trade with the Arab region,” a leading Indian entrepreneur from Hyderabad said.
Kamal Nath also said that India could emerge as the largest trading partner of the Gulf in two years. In the recent past, several Indian financial institutions have established operations in the region, which include State Bank of India, ICICI Bank and UTI Bank.
Over 500 delegates, besides the ministers of commerce and industry from the other five GCC countries and India are attending the conference.
Bahrain’s Commerce Minister Hassan Fakhro said the overall economic cooperation between the GCC and India was endorsed through a GCC-lndia Framework Agreement at the first conference, held in Mumbai in 2004.
“Our GCC region has a long history of trade with India and today, the GCC is the second largest export market for India and in turn India is the largest export market for the GCC,” he said.
“In the case of Bahrain, India represents around five percent of our non-oil exports, and in 2005 we imported over four percent of our total non-oil requirements from India.”
Commerce and Industry Minister Kamal Nath said the two sides have agreed to expand the scope of the agreement to include services and investments, thus making it a Comprehensive Economic 000peration Agreement instead of just a FTA.
“We (India and GCC), at a meeting in Riyadh last week, decided to work to finalise the FTA by early 2007,” Kamal Nath said while speaking at the opening session of the two-day Second lndia-GCC Industrial Conference which opened in Muscat Saturday.
At present, the Gulf is the second largest destination for India’s exports after the US. “Indian businessmen and entrepreneurs have already put India on the global map,” he said.
“We can look forward to a proactive engagement between our trade and investment promotion institutions as well as the private sectors on both sides.”
The current value of bilateral trade, excluding oil, between GCC countries and India is around $17 bn and is expected to reach $25 bn by 2010.
In 2004-05, India’s export to the GCC was $10 bn and imports from these countries, minus oil, stood at $7 bn.
According to Kamal Nath, there is a convergence of interests between India and the GCC states in the present global environment.
His Omanese counterpart Maqbool Bin Ah Sultan said the current economic scene in the GCC states and India was conducive to strategic economic cooperation.
“India is a promising market for energy. The opportunities will continue to exist for exporting greater quantities of Gulf oil and gas to India,” he said.
Countries like India, Kamal Nath, said are seen emerging as champions of trade and economic liberalisation. For the Gulf, India is the most attractive natural partner, he said.
“The indication is that the US may lose out to India as the largest trading partner of the Gulf in future, if India explores the scope of expanding its ties with the GCC. India has all the rootstocks to enhance the bilateral trade with the Arab region,” a leading Indian entrepreneur from Hyderabad said.
Kamal Nath also said that India could emerge as the largest trading partner of the Gulf in two years. In the recent past, several Indian financial institutions have established operations in the region, which include State Bank of India, ICICI Bank and UTI Bank.
Over 500 delegates, besides the ministers of commerce and industry from the other five GCC countries and India are attending the conference.
Bahrain’s Commerce Minister Hassan Fakhro said the overall economic cooperation between the GCC and India was endorsed through a GCC-lndia Framework Agreement at the first conference, held in Mumbai in 2004.
“Our GCC region has a long history of trade with India and today, the GCC is the second largest export market for India and in turn India is the largest export market for the GCC,” he said.
“In the case of Bahrain, India represents around five percent of our non-oil exports, and in 2005 we imported over four percent of our total non-oil requirements from India.”
posted by InCar Group Press Room at 16:32
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