Speed Post News Network
New Delhi : India and the United States held the twelfth Ministerial-level meeting of the India-United States Trade Policy Forum (TPF) in New Delhi on November 23, 2021. Commerce and Industry MInister, GoI, Piyush Goyal, and US Trade Representative, Ambassador Katherine Tai, co-chaired the TPF meeting.
They convened the TPF with a view to advancing the goal, announced by US President Joe Biden and Prime Minister Narendra Modi at their September 24, 2021 meeting, to “develop an ambitious, shared vision for the future of the trade relationship.” As India and the United States look ahead to define that ambitious future, the two Ministers recognised the importance of engaging in collaborative discussion on the full range of existing and emerging issues affecting the trade relationship, according to a PIB release.
The two leaders underlined the significance of the TPF in forging robust bilateral trade ties and enhancing the bilateral economic relationship to benefit working people in both the countries. They agreed that reconvening the TPF and regular engagement under the forum would help addressing outstanding bilateral trade concerns and allow the two countries to explore important, emerging trade policy issues.They agreed that the TPF Working Groups on agriculture, non-agriculture goods, services, investment, and intellectual property should be re-activated in order to address issues of mutual concern on an ongoing basis.
The two leaders expressed satisfaction over the robust rebound in bilateral merchandise trade this year 2021 (January – September 2021), which showed almost 50 percent growth over the same period in the previous year; bilateral merchandise trade in the current year is poised to surpass US$ 100 billion mark. The two Ministers also appreciated the importance of two-way services trade and foreign direct investment (FDI) as contributors to deeper economic and trade ties and noted buoyancy in bilateral FDI investments in recent months.
Ambassador Tai expressed her appreciation for a number of important economic reforms recently initiated by India, such as liberalissation of FDI in the insurance sector, elimination of a retrospective provision in income tax, and launching of the “Single Window System” for facilitating investment. These reforms have enabled improvements in the business ecosystem and Ambassador Tai encouraged the continuation of market-oriented reforms implemented through transparent means. They underlined the importance of establishing a conducive environment for further integrating the two economies to the benefit of both sides.
The two Ministers underlined the importance of the India-U.S. trade and economic partnership in addressing global challenges. They agreed to work collaboratively and constructively in relevant multilateral trade bodies including the WTO, the G20, and the OECD both for enhancing the bilateral trade relationship and for achieving a shared vision of a transparent, rules-based global trading system among market economies and democracies.