India holds bilateral talks with Japan and UK

Indian Commerce and Industry Minister Piyush Goyal (R) meets Japanese Commerce Minister Nishimura Yasutoshi at the G7 Trade Ministers' Meeting in Osaka, Japan, October 28. (Source: Asian Lite International)

On October 28, on the sidelines of the G7 Trade Ministers' Meeting in Osaka (Japan), Indian Minister of Commerce and Industry Piyush Goyal held separate talks on trade and investment with Japanese Minister of Commerce Nishimura Yasutoshi and British Minister of Business and Trade Kemi Badenoch.

On the same day, sharing on social networking site X, Minister Goyal emphasized that India is making efforts to promote bilateral trade and investment relations with Japan in many fields.

Bilateral trade between India and Japan has surged after the signing of the Comprehensive Economic Partnership Agreement (CEPA) and crossed $20 billion by fiscal 2022. However, the South Asian nation's trade deficit with Japan has nearly doubled over a period of 11 years to $8.2 billion.

Also on October 28, Mr. Goyal and Minister Kemi Badenoch discussed the negotiation process of the India-UK free trade agreement, including the areas of goods, services, investment and intellectual property rights.

New Delhi is now boosting access for its professionals from sectors such as information technology and healthcare to the UK, as well as market access for some goods at zero customs duties.

Meanwhile, Britain wants to significantly cut customs duties on goods such as Scotch whisky, cars and some confectionery items such as chocolate.