Jaitley, Lew to co-chair India-US EFP dialogue

Finance Minister Arun Jaitley and his American counterpart Jacob Lew will next week co-chair the annual India-US Economic and Financial Partnership (EFP) Dialogue here which over the years has helped manage a robust and manufacturing relationship between the two countries.
"What the EFP does is help manage a robust and maturing relationship. It brings together policymakers from our two countries to discuss macroeconomic, financial, and related structural policies in a way that enables us to clarify where we agree, where we may disagree, and how we can work together to resolve our differences. This is a win-win partnership," said Nathan Sheets, Undersecretary of Treasury.

The EFP has served as a framework for collaboration for two Treasury Secretaries with three Indian finance ministers in two different governments.
"This will be the last EFP of the Obama administration, and I feel confident that we are passing on to the next administration a strong institutional framework for engagement," Sheets said adding that he is convinced that the next Treasury Secretary will continue to build on the progress as the US and Indian economies become ever more entwined.
Addressing the Carnegie Endowment for International Peace, a top American think-tank, Sheets said since the inaugural EFP in 2010, the two countries have discussed challenges facing both the economies and the global economy at large.

"We have strengthened cooperation to combat money laundering and terrorist financing. And our financial regulatory agencies have convened to discuss issues pertinent to our financial sectors, including the reforms we are undertaking to enhance efficiency and resilience," he said.

"We have discussed measures to deepen Indian capital markets as a means for mobilising financing to key sectors of the economy. The EFP has facilitated discussions between our tax authorities," Sheets said.
"The outcomes from these discussions have had a positive impact on our firms, and on India's attractiveness as an investment destination. In sum, the EFP has become a robust, wide-ranging forum for managing the economic and financial issues that arise in the US-India relationship," he said.

"Heading into this year's EFP, the good news is that the Indian economy is one of the few bright spots among emerging markets, with growth this year likely to continue at around seven per cent," Sheets said.