[ad_1]
External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar said the Comprehensive Economic Partnership Agreement (CEPA) signed between India and the UAE on Friday marked a milestone in the bilateral ties, which will lead to a glorious, shared future and enhanced investments.
The path-breaking trade agreement was signed during a virtual summit between Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Abu Dhabi Crown Prince Sheikh Mohamed bin Zayed al Nahyan on Friday. The agreement was signed and exchanged by Commerce and Industry Minister Piyush Goyal and UAE Minister of Economy Abdulla bin Touq Al Marri in New Delhi.
In an exclusive statement to UAE’s official Emirates News Agency WAM, Jaishankar said the signing of the UAE-India CEPA “is a milestone event in our bilateral relations”.
“It will open new opportunities in both trade in goods and services, and will lead to enhanced investments,” he said.
“A vision document (signed during the virtual summit) will provide contours for future growth of our bilateral relationship for a glorious, shared future. Overall, the two (CEPA and the vision document) will deepen our strategic partnership,” Jaishankar said.
The UAE is India’s third largest trading partner and accounts for approximately 40 per cent of its trade with the Arab world, the WAM report said.
In September last year, India and the UAE formally launched negotiations for the trade agreement.
The pact covers areas including goods, services, rules of origin, customs procedures, government procurement, intellectual property rights, and e-commerce.
Under such agreements, two trading partners reduce or eliminate customs duties on the maximum number of goods traded between them. Besides, they also liberalise norms to enhance trade in services and boost investments.
Bilateral trade between India and the UAE stood at USD 43.3 billion in 2020-21. Exports were worth USD 16.7 billion and imports aggregated at USD 26.7 billion in 2020-21. The two-way commerce stood at USD 59.11 billion in 2019-20.
The UAE is a gateway to Africa and other parts of the world.
(Only the headline and picture of this report may have been reworked by the Business Standard staff; the rest of the content is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
Dear Reader,
Business Standard has always strived hard to provide up-to-date information and commentary on developments that are of interest to you and have wider political and economic implications for the country and the world. Your encouragement and constant feedback on how to improve our offering have only made our resolve and commitment to these ideals stronger. Even during these difficult times arising out of Covid-19, we continue to remain committed to keeping you informed and updated with credible news, authoritative views and incisive commentary on topical issues of relevance.
We, however, have a request.
As we battle the economic impact of the pandemic, we need your support even more, so that we can continue to offer you more quality content. Our subscription model has seen an encouraging response from many of you, who have subscribed to our online content. More subscription to our online content can only help us achieve the goals of offering you even better and more relevant content. We believe in free, fair and credible journalism. Your support through more subscriptions can help us practise the journalism to which we are committed.
Support quality journalism and subscribe to Business Standard.
Digital Editor
[ad_2]
Source link