India seeks greater access to Korean textile market

21 Aug '13

2 min read

Textiles and garments is among the three sectors for which India has sought greater access in the South Korean market.

At a bilateral meeting between India’s Minister of Commerce and Industry Anand Sharma and his Korean counterpart Mr. Yoon Sang-jick on the sidelines of Asean Ministerial meeting in Brunei, Mr. Sharma pointed out the widening trade deficit for India.

Realizing the need for more balance in the bilateral trade, the Korean Minister agreed to consider providing better market access to Indian products.

Mr. Sharma identified textiles and garments, information technology and generic medicine as the three sectors in which India needs greater access to the Korean market.

“A balanced trade is conducive to long term, sustainable and harmonious development of our economic cooperation” said Mr. Sharma, according to a statement from the Indian Ministry of Commerce and Industry.

Mr. Sharma appreciated the 70 percent growth in the first two years of implementation of Comprehensive Economic Partnership Agreement (CEPA) with Korea.

He informed the Korean Minister about the 12 National Investment and Manufacturing Zones (NIMZ) coming up in India as part of the National Manufacturing Policy which aims to increase the share of manufacturing in GDP from the current 16 percent to 26 percent, and elaborated on the huge opportunities available for the Korean companies to invest in infrastructure development in India.

In January-June 2013, India’s import from Korea stood at US$ 6.34 billion, while exports were US$ 1.77 billion in the same period.

In 2012, India’s exports from Korea stood at US$ 4.14 billion, while imports were US$ 13.50 billion.

Fibre2fashion News Desk - India

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