Eyes on India as deadline for key trade pact looms

Modi’s govt may not ratify TFA pact reached in Bali

NEW DELHI, July 23, (AFP): India under new Prime Minister Narendra Modi could take a stand Wednesday on whether it will support a key global trade pact which faces an end-of-the-month deadline for adoption, a government official said.

If India does not give its backing, it could delay or derail the deal streamlining customs procedures that would mark the first big global trade reform by the World Trade Organization (WTO) in two decades.

India’s Bharatiya Janata Party government, elected in May, warned earlier this month it might not ratify the trade facilitation agreement or TFA reached by the 160 WTO members last year in Bali.

The agreement is aimed at lowering trade barriers with the intention of making it easier for developing countries to trade with the developed world in global markets.

In a down-to-the-wire finish, New Delhi is seeking assurances on freedom to roll out food security programmes for its vast poor population.

“India wants the facilitation agreement but other concerns (on food security) must also be met,” the trade ministry official told AFP late Tuesday, asking not to be named.

The official added the cabinet was expected to meet Wednesday where it was likely to enunciate a position.

To come into effect, the TFA must be ratified by all WTO members by the end of this month and mid-2015 has been set for implementation.

The WTO can decide by a simple majority but normally operates by consensus. Indian media reports have said New Delhi may seek a ratification delay until Dec 31.

India’s reservations over the trade pact, which WTO officials say could add $1 trillion to annual global gross domestic product by making it easier for goods to cross borders, came into the spotlight earlier in July.

The government warned in a statement it could be “difficult to join the consen-