Swiss watches, chocolates to enter India at lower prices

NEW DELHI: Domestic customers will get access to high-quality Swiss products such as watches, chocolates, biscuits, and clocks at lower prices as India will phase out customs duties under its trade pact with the four-nation EFTA bloc on these goods over a period of time.

India and the bloc comprising Switzerland, Norway, Iceland and Liechtenstein signed a trade and economic partnership agreement (TEPA) on Sunday to boost trade and investments between the two regions.

It will take up to a year to implement the agreement due to an elaborate ratification process of these pacts in different countries.

“We are giving duty concessions on Swiss watches, and chocolates,” an official said. Some famous Swiss watch brands are Rolex, Omega, and Cartier.

Nestle, a Swiss brand, is the third-largest listed entity in the Indian FMCG segment and manufactures chocolates in India.

According to an analysis of the TEPA documents by economic think tank Global Trade Research Initiative (GTRI), India has allowed tariff concession to several products imported from Switzerland under the agreement.

“India will soon have access to high-quality Swiss products at lower prices because it has decided to remove tariffs on many Swiss goods over seven to ten years,” GTRI founder Ajay Srivastava said.

The GTRI said that after the implementation of the agreement, tariffs or duties would become zero for Swiss goods like coal except steam and coking coal, most medicines, and dyes. “Tariff to be reduced to zero in five years are cod liver oil, fish body oil; and duties over which India would eliminate the customs duties in seven years are tuna, trout, salmon, olive oil, cocoa bean, powder, malt products, corn flakes, instant tea, roasted chicory, most machinery, bicycle parts, clock, watches,” it said.

Items such as smartphones, olives, avocado, apricot, coffee, capsules, mate, hop cones, caramel, chocolate, products, medical equipment (most) would see duty elimination in 10 years.

Tariff on sugar will be reduced to 50 per cent in 10 years, and on cut and polished diamonds will be cut to 2.5 per cent (50 per cent duty in 5 years), the analysis said.

“Wines priced between USD 5 and less than USD 15 will see a duty reduction from 150 per cent to 100 per cent in the first year, then decreasing gradually to 50 per cent over 10 years,” Srivastava said.

For wines costing more than USD 15, the initial duty cut is from 150 per cent to 75 per cent, eventually reducing to 25 per cent after 10 years.