Tag: TRADE

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-Top News UK News

UK starts preparations for trade negotiations with India

UK trade secretary Liz Truss kicked off the preparations for the trade deal, under which Britain wants the removal of barriers to doing business and trading with India..,reports Asian Lite News

The United Kingdom on Tuesday started preparations for a trade deal with India, launching a 14-week consultation process to seek the views of the public and businesses ahead of negotiations on a free trade agreement set to begin in the autumn.

UK trade secretary Liz Truss kicked off the preparations for the trade deal, under which Britain wants the removal of barriers to doing business and trading with India, including the removal of tariffs of up to 150% on whisky and 125% on British-made cars.

Truss said, “We’re firing the starting gun on a free trade deal with India – the world’s largest democracy, fifth biggest economy, a nation of 1.4 billion people and a huge market for British goods like whisky, cars and services.

“We want an agreement that pushes new frontiers in industries of the future and helps us build a greener, more innovative and more services-led economy that will deliver higher-paying jobs across the country.”

The UK government is seeking input from consumers and businesses across all sectors that will help it craft a deal that includes closer cooperation in future-focused industries such as science, technology and services and creating high-value jobs across Britain.

ALSO READ: Saudi, UK FMs discuss ties in Riyadh

The UK also wants to make it easier for British services firms to operate in India, thereby boosting the country’s status as an international services hub. India’s growing middle-income population and connected youth will be the target consumers for goods and services from the UK.

International Trade Secretary Liz Truss and Indian Minister for Commerce and Industry Piyush Goyal (Credit: UK Government)

UK international trade minister Ranil Jayawardena said a trade deal with India will break down barriers and make it easier for British businesses to sell their goods, as well as secure more investments, higher wages and lower prices in Britain.

Before the negotiations start, the UK and India must complete a “pre-negotiation scoping phase” or a period of engagement with businesses and the public. The UK’s public consultation, which runs till August 31, includes a questionnaire that will gather information from participants about their experiences and priorities when doing business with India.

India-UK trade was worth £23 billion in 2019, and both countries want to double the figure by 2030. Almost half a million jobs are supported across India and the UK through investments in each other’s economies.

ALSO READ: Priti unveils UK digital visa

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-Top News Business UK News

UK, Ireland agree to maintain smooth post-Brexit trade

Prime Minister Boris Johnson hosts a bilateral at Chequers with Taoiseach Micheál Martin. Picture by Andrew Parsons / No 10 Downing Street

Prime Minister Boris Johnson and his Irish counterpart Micheal Martin agreed to maintain smooth trade between Great Britain, Northern Ireland and the Republic of Ireland, reports Asian Lite News

UK Prime Minister Boris Johnson and his Irish counterpart Micheal Martin have agreed to work together to “maintain smooth trade” between Great Britain, Northern Ireland and the Republic of Ireland after Brexit.

The agreement came during a meeting between the two leaders on Friday at Chequers, the country house of Johnson, reports Xinhua news agency.

“They agreed on the importance of working together to uphold the Belfast/Good Friday Agreement and to maintain smooth trade between Great Britain, Northern Ireland and the Republic of Ireland,” a statement from 10 Downing Street said.

Ireland
Prime Minister Boris Johnson hosts a bilateral at Chequers with Taoiseach Micheál Martin. Picture by Andrew Parsons / No 10 Downing Street

Taking to Twitter, Johnson said: “We are both committed to the Belfast/Good Friday Agreement and to addressing the legacy of the troubles to deliver a brighter future for everyone in Northern Ireland.”

Due to the post-Brexit trade deal, food products from Britain to the European Union (EU) will have to enter through new border control posts at Northern Ireland’s ports, as stated in the Northern Ireland protocol signed by London and Brussels in 2019.

Northern Ireland will continue to apply EU customs rules at its ports, to allow goods to flow into the Republic of Ireland and the rest of the EU.

This is known as the Irish sea border, which is a new trade border between Northern Ireland and other parts of Britain.

Prime Minister Boris Johnson hosts a bilateral at Chequers with Taoiseach Micheál Martin. Picture by Andrew Parsons / No 10 Downing Street

Also on Friday, Northern Ireland Agriculture Minister Edwin Poots was elected leader of the Democratic Unionist Party, a pro-British political party in the region.

Poots is reportedly seen by some commentators as more aggressive in his opposition to Northern Ireland’s post-Brexit trade barriers and more conservative on social issues than his opponent, Jeffrey Donaldson.

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Asia News Economy

Pak trade deficit widens to $23.8 billion

The trade gap has been widening since December 2020…reports Asian Lite News

Pakistan’s trade deficit widened to USD 23.8 billion, exceeding the annual target by USD 4.1 billion in 10 months of the current fiscal year.

According to Dawn, the country’s trade deficit witnessed a double-digit rise as it is widened by 21.6 per cent in the 10 months of 2020-21, posing a problem to the country’s COVID-19 battered economy.

The trade gap has been widening since December 2020. The surge in trade deficit is mainly led by exponential growth in imports with comparative slow growth in exports proceeds from the country, Dawn reported.

In April 2021, the trade deficit ballooned by 33.24 per cent to USD 2.99 bn as against USD 2.24 bn over the corresponding month of last year.

The import bill is rising mainly due to the increase in imports of petroleum, wheat, sugar, soybean, machinery, raw material and chemicals, mobiles, fertilisers, tyres and antibiotics and vaccines.

Also read:Pakistan to produce China’s vaccine

The import bill is constantly on the rise for the past few months. This comes as a blow to Pakistan’s economy which is reeling under the impact of coronavirus. The country is witnessing the second wave of the pandemic which has forced the government to impose lockdown in several cities.

“Export sector is not competitive and is still a family business that often leads to the division of assets after every two generations,” said Finance Minister Shaukat Tarin. He said that there was a need to consolidate the export sector to bring foreign direct investment to the sector.

Inflation in Pakistan too skyrocketed to over 11 per cent amid a surge in food prices amid the Ministry of Finance’s failure to give a realistic and professional assessment of the increasing prices in its monthly reports.

The Consumer Price Index jumped to 11.1 per cent in April over the same month a year ago. It was the highest rate of inflation in the past 13 months.

In February 2020, inflation had jumped to 12.4 per cent, reported The Express Tribune. (ANI)

Also read:Poverty in Pakistan linked to rising cases of child marriage

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-Top News Asia News Bangladesh

Indian envoy says trade will drive future Indo-Bangla relations

He said cooperation in these sectors can bring about a win-win situation for the two countries…reports Asian Lite News

Trade will be a potential key driver of Bangladesh-India friendship in the future with focus on product value addition, Indian High Commissioner to Bangladesh Vikram Kumar Doraiswami said, media reported.

Doraiswami was delivering a keynote at a symposium titled ‘Bangladesh-India Relations: Prognosis for the Future.’

The High Commissioner has called for closer integration of transportation systems, greater connectivity, power and energy sector cooperation, including renewable energy; blue economy cooperation and people-to-people connectivity and health sector cooperation, it was reported.

He said cooperation in these sectors can bring about a win-win situation for the two countries. 

“We should look at trade and a whole new framework. I believe trade will be potentially a key driver of our friendship in the future,” Indian High Commissioner to Bangladesh Vikram Kumar Doraiswami said, according to a UNB report.

A medical worker collects a swab sample from a teacher for COVID-19 test at a school in Karachi, Pakistan, on Sept. 14, 2020. After a consistent drop in new cases, the Pakistani government has announced to reopen educational institutes in phases from Sept. 15. (Str/Xinhua/IANS)

Doraiswami laid emphasis on sectors like food production, readymade garments (RMG) and textile in which Bangladesh could provide India with a key base for value addition.

A week ago, Doraiswami said the two countries have very special relationship and Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi visited Bangladesh braving the second wave of Coronavirus.

He also mentioned that India has provided vaccine to several countries and Bangladesh is the highest recipients among all the countries.

AstraZeneca vaccine

“We have said we would do our best to meet everyone’s needs, subject to limits of production, domestic demands, and other obligations. We will continue to do our best to support the vaccine rollout in our neighbourhood countries, but it is important to bear in mind that there is a huge wave of the pandemic underway in India.”

Doraiswami also said that there is limitation in the agreement signed between the original owners of the vaccine and manufacturing countries, including India. Now both, the owners of the vaccine formula and manufacturing countries, are working together to enhance production and supply of vaccine.

“We can assure Bangladesh that we will do our best to ensure that within the limit of physical production we will share whatever we can,” Doraiswami said.

Bangladesh has received more than 10.3 million vaccine doses, including 3.3 million as gift while rest as part of a commercial deal with the Serum Institute of India (SII), from India.

Beximco Pharma of Bangladesh signed a deal on November 5, 2020 with the SII to buy 30 million doses of a potential coronavirus vaccine being developed by British drug company AstraZeneca. As per the deal, India will supply five million doses of vaccine per month.

Also Read- Bangladesh suspends new Covishield doses

Read More-Bangladesh closes border with India

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-Top News India News UK News

India, UK to step up customs cooperation

The Union cabinet has given nod for the agreement that will ease trade between India and UK…reports Asian Lite News

The Modi Cabinet on Wednesday greenlighted the signing and ratification of an agreement between India and the UK on customs cooperation.

The cabinet statement said agreement between India and UK will offer relevant information for the prevention and investigation of Customs offences, Indianewsnetwork reported.

According to the Indianewsnetwork reports,the agreement is likely to bolster trade and ensure clearance of goods and it will be signed only after getting approval of both countries.

Meanwhile, as the Prime Minister’s visit to India is postponed but conversations are set to continue online later this month on the plans for the future partnership between the UK and India; the eighth edition of the Grant Thornton India meets Britain Tracker explores the significant contribution Indian companies continue to make to the UK economy, which has increased in almost every measure compared to the previous year’s report.

Also read:UK varsity sends breathing aids to India

The new research, developed by Grant Thornton UK LLP in collaboration with the Confederation of Indian Industry, analyses the data of UK-incorporated limited companies that are either owned or controlled by Indian interests.

This year’s research finds that there are 850 Indian companies operating in the UK, up from 842 in the 2020 report

During 2020, despite continued uncertainty over the final outcome of the UK’s exit from the European Union, the research finds that Indian investors have continued to invest in the UK. They were involved in ten acquisitions (the highest of any single EU country) throughout the year, including four in the technology and telecoms industry and two in manufacturing.

Also read:Indian companies’ contribution to UK economy grows

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-Top News Afghanistan Asia News

TRADE: Afghanistan Puts Pakistan On Back Burner

Pakistan’s trade with Afghanistan continues to shrink despite big claims by the PTP government. It’s trade with Afghanistan fell by 22 percent to reach $1.18 billion during 2019-2020. This is in contrast to the claims of reaching five billion over the next three years …. Writes Dr Sakariya Kareem

Helping Afghanistan prosper economically and supplying essentials to the landlocked Afghanistan was reiterated by Pakistan at the recent Heart of Asia Conference in Dushanbe. However, facts of its trade performance tell a different story of a shrinking trade.

Also Read – Pakistan Struggles to Stem Covid Surge

Pakistan’s trade with Afghanistan fell by 22 percent to reach $1.18 billion during 2019-2020. This is in contrast to the claims of reaching five billion over the next three years. Official sources in Islamabad as well as Kabul admit that the target is rather ambitious and does not take into account the ground reality, especially, of Pakistan’s own capacity to deliver.
Notably, Pakistan’s exports to Afghanistan declined 13.6 percent to $629.3 million from $728.3 million. A few years ago, Afghanistan was the second largest export destination after the US.

Pakistani Foreign Minister Shah Mahmood Qureshi speaks at a press conference in Kuwait. (Xinhua/Asad/IANS)

Trade Ministry sources in Islamabad explain that low trade performance has much to do with the unsettled conditions on both sides of the border and the Covid-19 pandemic. But the fact is that Pakistan has for long lost the Afghan market to its rivals – China, India and some of the Central Asian countries. The Trade Development Authority of Pakistan (TDAP) explains that the loss of the Afghan market is because Iran, India and China offer value-added products, relatively attractive transit tariffs, and better consignment handling facilities. China, being the supplier of value-added goods is becoming the leading competitor and taking over the lion’s share in Afghan market. Similarly, Iran offers competitive rates, better consignment handling facilities and cost-effective transportation. In Pakistan, costs for all these facilities have increased substantially over the years.

Chief of Afghanistan High Council for National Reconciliation Abdullah Abdullah meets Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi in New Delhi

Meanwhile, the data of State Bank of Pakistan (SBP) indicates that Pakistan’s trade deficit with the other regional countries narrowed only slightly during the period as imports from these countries also decreased. That, again, points to low capacity and poor performance.
A conflict-hit Afghanistan has, actually, performed better. Pakistan’s imports from Afghanistan have surged, especially of essential kitchen items like tomatoes, potatoes, onions and fresh and dried fruits, as per SBP data.

Also Read – India calls for peace ‘within and around’ Afghanistan

As for land-based trade, Afghan trade transit resumed after Pakistani authorities decided to open up Torkham border on a 24/7 basis. However, every time there is a skirmish along the border due to movement of militant that Pakistan is pursuing, the border post gets closed to trade. As bilateral relations suffer, goods lie stranded and get pilfered. Perishable goods like fruit and vegetables get destroyed.

Afghanistan is compelled to explore other trade routes. Chabahar has come to its aid. Behrouz Aqaei, the Director General of Ports and Maritime Department of Iran’s Sistan-Baluchestan Province explained that Chabahar is believed to be the best and economical transit route into Afghanistan and Central Asian countries.

Also Read – Biden in Limbo as Taliban Flex Muscles

India has stepped in to help Afghanistan by sending goods via Iran’s Chabahar, or Shahid Behesti, port. In mid-April 2020, a 75,000-metric-ton consignment of Indian wheat heading for Afghanistan arrived at Chabahar to be delivered to the destination country through land borders. According to Aqaei, the Indian government sent the mentioned cargo aiming to support its trade partner during the coronavirus pandemic. The consignment consisted of 203 20-metric-feet containers that had been shipped from Kandla Port in eastern India.

Afghanistan is also acknowledging the prospect of long term change in its trade with Pakistan. Afghanistan Chamber of Commerce and Industries (ACCI) say that Afghanistan’s economic dependency on Pakistan has decreased following the establishment of new alternative trade and transit routes with a number of countries.

The deputy head of the ACCI, Tawfiq Dawari, aid trade and transit volume between Afghanistan and Pakistan has been decreasing. “While we use Karachi port and have bilateral trade ties with Pakistan, our trade relations have been maintained with other countries as well and the reason is that we use other countries and international markets as well,” said Dawari.

Also Read – Targeted killings soar in Afghanistan

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-Top News India News USA

US Trade chief slams India’s high tariffs

Earlier, USTR had slammed India’s Equalisation Levy as discriminatory and unreasonable,creating significant new tax burden for the US companies…reports Asian Lite News

The US Trade Representative (USTR) in its latest report on Foreign Trade Barriers released on March 31 has highlighted major trade barriers to American exports, FDI and e-commerce.

This report has been issued by Joe Biden Administration’s newly appointed USTR, Katherine Tai who replaced Ambassador Robert Lighthizer after Donald Trump lost the election last year. It has found India’s trade policies discriminatory which creates both tariff and non tariff-barriers and poses a threat to US trade and imports to India. Trade barriers include government laws, regulations and policies.

Duties, according to the report, have been increased across two large groups: Labour-intensive products and electronics and communication devices, such as cell phones, televisions, and related parts and components.

Earlier in January 2021, USTR had found India’s Equalisation Levy as discriminatory and unreasonable,creating significant new tax burden for the US companies and/or restricting US commerce — forcing them to undertake costly compliance measures.

Finance Ministry issued clarifications in February 2021, but the matter, instead of improving, has become much worse. US companies across the board have complained that the latest interpretation means that even merchandise trade will be subject to Equalisation Levy. The new interpretation is increasing nervousness and fear of tax terrorism, due to retrospective impact of such levy, even further.

Also read:Biden picks Indian American as Washington judge

According to the report, the United States’ trade deficit with India in 2020 was up 1.7 per cent to $23.8 billion, exports down 20.1 per cent to $27.4 billion, and India’s imports down 11.3 per cent to $51.2 billion, from last year. The report highlights that the US exporters continue to encounter significant tariff and non-tariff barriers. Additionally, there exists large disparities between WTO bound rates and India’s MFN applied rates — currently the highest in the world at 17.6 per cent.

In addition, the report also highlights the unpredictability and opaqueness that plagues India’s tariff regime and how it poses major challenges to the US trade to India. As per the report, the Indian Government used the last two Union Budgets to increase tariffs on approximately 70 product categories, including key US exports, without warning or public consultation.

The report also places a major focus on barriers to Digital Trade. From wide-ranging data localisation requirements across sectors and policies like the Personal Data Protection Bill, 2019, RBI localisation guidelines, yet-to-be released e-commerce policy to the much discussed Equalisation Levy, the USTR claims that these digital barriers will impede foreign trade and increase the risk of retaliation from other countries, putting interests of Indian companies at risk.

Commerce Minister Piyush Goyal has made every attempt to negotiate a trade deal with previous USTR Lighthizer since September 2019, but without success. Fresh tariff hikes, equalisation levy and the recently notified IT Rules highlighted in the report, will further queer the pitch for a trade negotiation with the new USTR Katherine Tai, with whom Goyal has already held an introductory meeting two weeks ago.

As per the USTR, the recently notified IT Rules “incentivize overly restrictive approaches to policing non-IP user-generated content and will undermine many Internet-based platform services.”

Also read:Biden’s boost for infra, jobs



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-Top News Australia China

Morrison not okay with China’s new wine tariffs

Australian Prime Minister Scott Morrison

China and Australia have been facing deadlock in a trade since last year ….reports Asian Lite News

Australian Prime Minister Scott Morrison on Saturday said that new Chinese wine tariffs set to last for five years were “not ok” and deemed them as retaliation for Canberra standing up for its values.

The measures, which are set to take effect on Sunday, were described as anti-dumping duties by China in a Commerce Ministry announcement, dpa news agency reported.

Beijing and Canberra have been locked in a trade dispute that escalated last year and saw China hit wine, beef, barley and coal with trade tariffs and customs delays.

XI CHINA

Morrison pointed to Australia’s stance against the treatment of the Uighur Muslim minority in China as a reason for the latest move, in comments reported by Australian news agency AAP.

China this week slapped sanctions on British entities and individuals after the UK made a similar move, citing human rights concerns over internment camps in Xinjiang that are estimated to have held more than 1 million people since 2017.

Beijing says they are “vocational education centres”.

The UK’s action followed similar measures put in place by Canada, the European Union and the US.

Meanwhile, Australian Minister for Trade, Tourism and Investment Dan Tehan said the tariffs of between 116 and 218 per cent make it “basically impossible” for the country’s wine to compete in the Chinese market.

He said he had spoken to Australian wine industry leaders and was considering going to the World Trade Organization with the issue.

China is Australia’s largest trading partner.

In 2018-2019, China bought around 26 per cent of exports, valued at A$235 billion.

Also read:Iran, China step up trade ties

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-Top News UAE News UK News

UAE, UK launch sovereign investment partnership

An initial ₤800m commitment from Mubadala to invest in UK life sciences over five years is the first focus for the SIP, reports Asian Lite News.

Abu Dhabi’s Mubadala Investment Company — world’s leading sovereign investors, and the Department for International Trade and the Prime Minister’s Office’s have established an UK Office for Investment.

An initial ₤800m commitment from Mubadala to invest in UK life sciences over five years is the first focus for the SIP. The sum will be deployed alongside the UK’s ₤200m Life Sciences Investment Programme announced last year. This will act as a pool to enable more UK life sciences businesses to scale and grow. The OfI and Mubadala will work together to identify commercially viable opportunities for investment into the sector.

This is the first agreement of its kind for the UK and the Office for Investment and will deepen existing UK-UAE trade and investment ties that were worth ₤32 billion in 2019.

The UAE-UK Sovereign Investment Partnership (SIP) will serve as a coordinated investment framework to grow a future-focused relationship between the two nations, driving economic recovery, jobs and growth.

Combined, these funds will provide much needed stable investment into the next generation of life science companies around the country. The industry, which generates ₤80 billion turnover a year within the UK and employs more than 250,000 people, is expected to benefit from stronger links in life sciences research, education and closer ties between the UAE and UK.

Over a five-year period, the SIP will invest across several tech and innovation-led sectors such as energy transition and infrastructure that will support job creation in both nations, strengthen national research and development capabilities and develop new areas of investment collaboration.

Khaldoon Khalifa Al Mubarak, Managing Director and Group CEO of Mubadala commented, “The UAE and UK are aligned on the importance of global action on critical priorities such as healthcare innovation and delivery, climate change and the sustainable growth of high-skilled industries.

“Coordination on investment and global innovation ecosystems is vital to enabling progress against these challenges and presents a significant post-COVID economic opportunity for the UK and UAE.

“Mubadala is already a long-term investor in UK innovation and growth, and our new partnership now provides a platform to allocate stable capital to priority sectors as part of a future-focused investment relationship.”

UK International Trade Secretary Liz Truss said, “The UAE is an important trading partner for the UK and home to some of the world’s largest and most experienced investment companies. It’s fantastic that we are collaborating more closely in the industries of tomorrow like science, tech and green growth, so we can build back better and deliver an investment-led, jobs-led recovery from coronavirus.

“This is a major win for the Office for Investment and shows how the UK is an investment destination of choice. From Liverpool and Edinburgh to Oxford and Nottingham, our world class life sciences clusters and innovative businesses will see the benefits of this partnership.”

Gerry Grimstone, UK Minister for Investment said, “This partnership will enable the UK life sciences sector to develop cutting-edge technologies and research while retaining homegrown innovation and jobs. It will also leverage the UK and UAE’s mutual priorities in building better and stronger economies through investment.

“Attracting and enabling strategic international investors to operate effectively in the UK is vital to job creation and our growth as a world leader in life sciences, clean growth, tech and innovation. Mubadala is exactly the calibre of investor that we want to partner with to enable vital pillars of our economy to advance.”

Mubadala will also connect UK industries to research and innovation initiatives across its global portfolio spanning more than 50 countries, which has a major focus on innovation and technology-led sectors, including composite manufacturing, semiconductors, renewable energy, biotech and urban mobility. The UAE-UK partnership will build on the investment model Mubadala has established in other geographies.

The SIP’s inaugural life sciences investments are expected to complete later this year.

Also Read-New UAE envoy visits Maha Governor

Read More-‘UAE secretly mediates for Indo-Pak peace’

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India News Maharashtra

New policy to stop illicit liquor sale

Sisodia added the new policy will also ensure equitable distribution of liquor across the national capital….reports Asian Lite News.

The Delhi Excise Department said on Monday that it lodged 1,864 FIRs against illegal liquor traders across the city besides recovering over seven lakh bottles of illicit liquor in the last two years.

Deputy Chief Minister of Delhi, Manish Sisodia, who also holds the finance portfolio, said the Excise Department has arrested around 2,000 people involved in illegal liquor trade in the national capital during the same period.

Delhi’s deputy chief minister Manish Sisodia announced lowering of legal age to drink liquor in the national capital to 21 from 25 during a press conference at Secretariat in New Delhi, India, on Monday, March 22, 2021 (Pallav Paliwal)

Talking about Delhi government’s upcoming excise policy, Sisodia told the media that the new policy is aimed at doing away with liquor mafia, besides shoring up its revenue share by up to 20 per cent in a year.

“As per the government’s record, there are around 850 registered liquor shops but people say that more than 2,000 liquor shops are run by the liquor mafias in Delhi. To curb all these irregularities and to fight the liquor mafia, we have come up with this new excise policy,” Sisodia added.

“The liquor shop owners will have to ensure law and order outside the shops. If needed, they can take the help of the police or security guards, but ensuring law and order will be the responsibility of the liquor shop owners. The new policy will stop bootlegging and illicit liquor sale,” he said.

Sisodia added the new policy will also ensure equitable distribution of liquor across the national capital.

“We have decided to set up an international standard check-up system through which we will keep a watch on low-quality liquors and stop their distribution. An international quality lab will be set up to test the quality of liquor coming into the city,” the Deputy CM said.

Also Read-Kejriwal says Delhi to bid for 2048 Olympics

Read More-Delhi HC directs status quo on Future-Reliance deal