India, Peru to hasten FTA talks; round 7 in April
India and Peru are trying to speed up talks on the proposed bilateral free trade agreement (FTA), after it got delayed due to the COVID19 pandemic and have scheduled the seventh round of negotiations in New Delhi, from April 8, before which offer lists on goods and services are likely to be exchanged, sources said.
“The proposed FTA with Peru is significant for India as it seeks to increase its presence in LatinAmerican countries in line with the policy decision to diversify beyond traditional markets. The COVID19 pandemic led to a pause in the negotiations but since the IndiaPeru FTA talks restarted in February this year, both sides are trying to expedite it,” an official tracking the matter said.
Gold negotiations
Although the Model Code of Conduct (MCC) for the 2024 Lok Sabha elections has come into force, it would not apply to ongoing trade negotiations, senior government officials had recently clarified. However, Cabinet approval for an FTA during the MCC period may be difficult.
Peru is interested in higher market access for its gold, which accounts for about 80% of its exports to India and also some agricultural items such as avocados and blueberries.
“Negotiations on gold could be tricky as it is a very important export item for Peru but as it is a highvalue item, reducing import duties on it as part of the FTA may not be easy for India,” the official said.
In FY23, the yellow metal accounted for $1.8 billion or 80% of India’s imports from Peru, per research body GTRI. Import duty on gold in India is 15%, including basic custom duty of 10% and agriculture infrastructure development cess of 5%.
Trade expansion
Interestingly, in its recently concluded free trade agreement with the EFTA bloc comprising Switzerland, Iceland, Norway and Liechtenstein, India did not offer any effective tariff concession on gold. This was even though in Switzerland’s case, too, gold exports to India, valued at over $16 billion in 202223, comprised about 80% of its total exports to the country. While India agreed to a 1% concession on the bound rate of 40%, the effective duty stays at 15%.
“Apart from gold, Peru would also be interested in exporting more agricultural products like avocados, grapes and blueberries to India. The negotiators would decide what is the scope of such items,” an industry source said.
India hopes to have greater market access for traditional exports such as motor vehicles, cotton yarn and pharmaceuticals while exploring opportunities in new products.
As imports from India comprise less than 2% of Peru’s total imports, the Commerce Department is of the view there is a significant scope for expansion of IndiaLAC bilateral trade. Efforts are on to double the bilateral trade to $100 billion in the coming years, officials said.
During FY 202223, the bilateral trade volume reached $3.12 billion, as per government data.
(The writer is with The Hindu businessline)