India-Sri Lanka FTA talks focuses on apparel quota, pharmaceutical procurement
The Morning: India is currently negotiating a free trade agreement with the European Union (EU), the UK, Sri Lanka, and Peru, as per the year-end review statement of the Commerce Ministry.
An official statement from the Ministry said that the India-Sri Lanka Economic and Technology Cooperation Agreement (ETCA) negotiations are ongoing with the 12th round of negotiations conducted from 30 October to 1 November 2023 in Colombo.
It added that both sides also agreed to continue discussions on matters, including apparel quota and pharmaceutical procurement.
“The India-European Union (EU) free trade agreement negotiations were formally re-launched on 17 June 2022. The negotiations cover 23 policy areas/chapters. Six rounds of negotiations have been held till October 2023,” the ministry said.
In the case of India-UK FTA, 13 rounds of talks have been completed and the next round will take place in January 2024.
With Peru, the discussions on various chapters, including rules of origin, trade in goods, trade facilitation, sanitary, and phytosanitary measures were undertaken during this special round of talks.
OSL take:
Sri Lanka and India enjoy strong bilateral and trade ties that have been strengthened by an operational free trade agreement (FTA). Both, the Sri Lankan and Indian governments are looking at further enhancing the existing FTA between the two countries. This is also in line with the government of Sri Lanka’s decision to review and revamp the country’s existing trade ties with other countries in order to expand the existing ties while looking at forming new trade ties. Sri Lanka’s geographical positioning in the Indian Ocean and the many trade agreements as well as trade concessions enjoyed with other countries have all placed Sri Lanka as an emerging business destination in the South Asian region. With the ongoing economic activities in the country and the growing opportunities have made Sri Lanka an attractive business/investment destination. Foreign businesses/investors therefore could explore the expanding opportunities in Sri Lanka as well as look at setting up base in the country in order to engage with other countries in the region using Sri Lanka’s trade ties.
| Article Code : | VBS/AT/20240111/Z_1 |