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News Topical, Digital Desk : India and the Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC), a six-nation grouping of Middle East countries, on Thursday signed the Terms of Reference to begin negotiations for a Free Trade Agreement (FTA).
The Terms of Reference (ToR) outline the scope and modalities of a proposed trade pact. The signing took place in the presence of Commerce and Industry Minister Piyush Goyal. The GCC is a union of six Gulf countries, including Saudi Arabia, the UAE, Qatar, Kuwait, Oman, and Bahrain.
What did Piyush Goyal say?
Goyal said the agreement will help boost bilateral trade and investment between the two countries. "These two trading partners have been trading with each other for more than 5,000 years," he said.
He pointed out that around 10 million Indians live and work in the GCC region. Goyal said, "It is very important that we now have a stronger and more robust trade agreement that will allow for a more free flow of goods and services, provide predictability and stability in policy, and encourage greater investment."
Piyush Goyal enumerated the benefits
He said the agreement will boost food and energy security for the GCC countries as well as India. While India is a major producer of grain in the world, the GCC countries are exporters of oil and gas.
Goyal said, "We will also get an opportunity to jointly expand Indian infrastructure and infrastructure in the GCC. We will also get the support of high-quality companies working in the infrastructure sector. This partnership will greatly benefit our petrochemical industry."
9 trade pacts with 38 countries
Furthermore, he said that Indian information and communication technology companies will find opportunities in the ever-growing GCC market. India has already implemented a free trade pact with the UAE in May 2022. Goyal said that the government has concluded nine trade pacts with 38 developed countries in the past few years.
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