CEPA

The next round of negotiations between India and Chile on the proposed free trade agreement is expected to be held in December here, an official said. The pact with the the South American nation may help India access critical minerals, which are key inputs for electronics, auto, and solar sectors. India and Chile concluded the third round of negotiations for a Comprehensive Economic Partnership Agreement (CEPA) in Santiago. The four-day talks concluded on October 30. India is seeking preferential treatment for critical minerals in Chile under the pact. India's growing trade engagement with Chile reflects its strategic focus on building stronger partnerships with the Latin American region through mutually beneficial and comprehensive economic cooperation frameworks, the official said. India and Chile implemented a preferential trade agreement (PTA) in 2006 and are now negotiating to widen its scope for a comprehensive economic partnership agreement. CEPA aims to build upon the exis

Commerce Minister Piyush Goyal's Qatar visit on October 6-7 will include talks on the proposed India-Qatar trade agreement, reviewing bilateral trade and strengthening sectoral cooperation

The conclusion and signing of the proposed free trade agreement between India and Oman is expected to be announced soon, an official has said. The trade pact text is being translated into Arabic in Oman. After that, the cabinets of both countries will approve the agreement, according to the official. "Both countries have, in principle, decided to announce the conclusion and signing together," the official added. When asked if it would take two to three months, the official said: "Much less" than that. The talks for the agreement, officially termed the Comprehensive Economic Partnership Agreement (CEPA), formally began in November 2023. In such agreements, two trading partners either significantly reduce or eliminate customs duties on a maximum number of goods traded between them. They also ease norms to promote trade in services and attract investments. Oman is the third-largest export destination among the Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) countries for India. India already has a

Only authorised importers can now bring gold or silver under India-UAE CEPA; new codes introduced to curb gold misdeclared as platinum to avoid higher duties

With the government seeking a review of certain provisions of a free trade agreement with UAE, think tank GTRI on Friday asked for the withdrawal of duty cut concessions on platinum, silver, diamonds, gold jewellery, and tweak the rules of origin norms in the pact. India and the United Arab Emirates (UAE) signed the Free Trade Agreement (FTA), officially dubbed as Comprehensive Economic Partnership Agreement (CEPA) on February 18, 2022, and implemented on May 1, 2022. The Global Trade Research Initiative (GTRI) has earlier stated that the pact contains provisions for unlimited imports of duty-free gold, silver, platinum, and diamonds into India over the next few years and it would hurt domestic industry. It has also alleged that there is a potential misuse of the rules of origin in the agreement and due to that India should review the CEPA. Meeting these rules are must to get duty concessions under the agreement. In the review, it said India should focus on issues such as "withdraw

Under the CEPA, India allows 7 per cent customs duty concessions on import of unlimited quantities of silver and 1 per cent concession on 160 metric tonnes of gold

CEPA is also commonly referred to as a free trade agreement, or FTA. The next round of talks for it with Oman are scheduled to start on January 16

Customs duty concession demand on petrochemical products such as polypropylene and polyethylene, used primarily in the plastics industry, may act as a sticking point in the early conclusion of talks for the proposed free-trade agreement (FTA) between India and Oman, according to an official. Negotiations for the pact, officially dubbed the Comprehensive Economic Partnership Agreement (CEPA), are in the last phase. Certain domestic players from both public and private sectors are opposing duty concessions on these products under the agreement. They are claiming that Oman provides huge subsidies to its industry on raw materials for the production of these petrochemical products. According to them, if India would give duty concessions on these already subsidised products, it would be a double advantage for Omani firms. The government official said that they are holding talks with domestic players on the issue. Officials of the two countries concluded the second round of talks for th

The negotiations for the proposed free trade agreement (FTA) between India and Oman are moving at a fast pace and the pact is likely to be signed next month, a senior government official said. Officials of the two countries concluded the second round of talks for the pact, officially dubbed as Comprehensive Economic Partnership Agreement (CEPA) earlier this month in Muscat. "With Oman, there is a very good progress and both sides are very eager to conclude this deal. It may be signed in January 2024," the official said. The negotiations on the text of most of the chapters have been concluded by both sides. Oman is India's third-largest export destination among the Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) countries. The pact would help increase exports from India post the free trade agreement, as currently over 80 per cent of its goods enter Oman at an average 5 per cent import duties, and there are not many trade barriers. According to think tank GTRI's (Global Trade Research Initiative) ..

It is learnt that the department of commerce has set an internal deadline of finalising the deal by month-end

The gem and jewellery trade between India and UAE has grown significantly, particularly following the India-UAE CEPA agreement, and about 30 per cent of the total gems and jewellery imported by the emirate is sourced from India, the Gem and Jewellery Export Promotion Council (GJEPC) said. The UAE currently imports gems and jewellery amounting to USD 3.12 billion from India, the GJEPC said. The UAE imports a total of USD 10.48 billion worth of jewellery from around the world, and a significant portion, approximately 30 per cent is sourced from India," Vipul Shah, the Chairman of Gem and Jewellery Export Promotion Council (GJEPC), has said. Shah made the remarks while addressing the third edition of the International Gem and Jewellery Show (IGJS) in Dubai on Tuesday. The show from October 10-12 is supported by the Ministry of Commerce and Industry, the Government of India, and the Embassy of India in UAE. Additionally, it is supported by Dubai Gold and Jewellery Group, while Suntech

Union Minister Piyush Goyal on Monday said India is actively considering entering into free trade pacts and comprehensive economic partnership agreements to tap new markets, increase exports and create opportunities for the domestic textile industry. The Minister of Textiles highlighted that the Pradhan Mantri Mega Integrated Textile Region and Apparel (PM MITRA) Park is being established across 7 states to promote India's textile sector in a significant manner. Goyal said PM MITRA Parks will lead to a reduction of logistic costs due to a cluster-based approach to manufacturing and production of quality products with appropriate testing facilities. The minister emphasised that countrymen deserve the best quality of garments and this should be ensured by all the stakeholders. He encouraged the industry to focus on quality and test their products to comply with quality standards. Goyal said India is pioneering sustainable textiles, contributing to a lesser carbon footprint and promo

India will seek easier entry for dentists, nurses, company secretaries into the UAE as it explores mutual recognition agreements (MRAs) with the latter as part of CEPA

Gem and Jewellery Export Promotion Council on Tuesday launched India Jewellery Exposition Centre, a 365-day exhibition platform, in Dubai to commemorate the first anniversary of the Comprehensive Economic Partnership Agreement. "CEPA is one of the most ambitious pacts. India's exports to UAE have exceeded USD 30 billion, with gems and jewellery and plastics deriving benefits from lower-priced inputs. GJEPC (Gem and Jewellery Export Promotion Council) has set up IJEX and I see tremendous value in such initiatives. "CEPA will accelerate business momentum and is expected to transform the scale and scope of bilateral partnerships," Department for Promotion of Industry and Internal Trade (DPIIT) Secretary Rajesh Kumar said in a statement. The Comprehensive Economic Partnership Agreement (CEPA) has been a boon to the bilateral trade relations between the two nations, with India-UAE trade growing by 16 per cent to reach USD 84.5 billion in 2022-23 from USD 72.9 billion the previous year.

During May-March (2022-23), out of 110 MTs TRQ of gold allocated, only 8.1 MT was imported

"Such trade facilitation can also help in enhancing our exports; logistics cost will also come down," the official said

India exported goods worth $285.9 billion during the June-January period, up 3.1%

A special business event was organised on Friday to celebrate the completion of one year of the signing of the India-UAE Comprehensive Economic Partnership Agreement (CEPA) in Abu Dhabi.Marking a successful year of CEPA signing, a Special Business Event was organised by the Federation of Indian Chambers of Commerce & Industry (FICCI) in association with the Embassy of India, Abu Dhabi, Consulate General of India, Dubai and Dubai Chambers on 17th February 2023 at Dubai, read the press release of the Indian Embassy in Abu Dhabi, UAE.The event was participated in by more than 200 leading businesses from India and the UAE, added the release.India and UAE on February 18th, 2022 signed a historical Comprehensive Economic Partnership Agreement (CEPA).The CEPA was signed during the virtual summit in the presence of Prime Minister Narendra Modi and the President of UAE, Sheikh Mohamed bin Zayed Al Nahyan,Addressing the gathering at the special business event, Dr Thani Al Zeyoudi, UAE ...

The clause was added to the agreement to encourage other countries to join the pact, making it a regional agreement, the sources said

Progress on the Australian trade pact signals a momentum shift