India has decided not to sign the Regional Comprehensive Economic Partnership Agreement in Bangkok.
The Prime Minister felt that India’s key concerns haven’t been addressed and it would be a disservice to the poorer sections of the society, the service sector, the industry and consumers themselves.
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Government sources pointed out that previous deals that were signed were unfair towards India. They said that for example, India opened up 74% of its markets to the ASEAN nations but a country like Indonesia only opened 50% of its market to India.
India’s key concerns that weren’t addressed by the current agreement include: inadequate protection against import surge, lack of transparency in the rules of origin, no assurance on market access and non-tariff trade barriers.
One of the primary concerns was related to the issue of Chinese dumping their products on India. Already there is a huge trade deficit between the two nations. Expert on the Chinese economy and columnist, Amal Sinha felt that India has done the right thing by rejecting the deal. “Any trade deal and economic partnership with China spells danger to the nations involved. China is a mercantilist economy and does everything illegally to benefit itself, including heavily subsidising their industries, denying market access to other nations and flouting the rules of origin”. He warned other nations to stay away from China and anything associated with them.
The Indian delegation also felt that adequate access to the services market hasn’t been assured for the Indian companies which include many service giants.
The Prime Minister said that: “India stands for greater regional integration as well as for freer trade and adherence to international order. India is pro-actively, constructively and meaningfully engaged in the RCEP negotiations since its inception”.
India has felt that the current trade and economic uncertainties haven’t been made part of the agreement, hence it doesn’t make any prudent sense to sign the agreement.
The Australian Prime Minister though expressed hope that India could join at a later stage.