RCEP and India's FTA strategy

Instead of insisting on both goods and services trade liberalisation to be taken up simultaneously, India should adopt a more pragmatic approach

The India–Australia Comprehensive Economic Cooperation Agreement (CECA) entering a “slow period” (The Indian Express, August 9, 2018) is the latest example of India’s free-trade agreement (FTA) strategy getting into a sunset mode (Business Standard, July, 24, 2018). The slowdown in FTA negotiations is partly because of the pressure India is facing from Association of Southeast Asian Nations (Asean) members to bring the Regional Comprehensive Economic Partnership (RCEP) to a conclusion. The RCEP countries have been struggling with the negotiations for the past six years, to a large extent on account of India’s offer of limited and differentiated tariff liberalisation and,