Goyal Promises India-US Trade Deal Will Protect Farmers

NEW DELHI-Commerce and Industry Minister Piyush Goyal said on October 29 that when details of the India-US trade deal negotiations are released, people will recognize that the sensitive interests of farmers and other stakeholders have not been compromised and that the agreement will place India at a strong comparative advantage.

Goyal said trade was fundamentally about comparative advantage and competitiveness, rather than absolute numbers alone. He noted that many developed countries imposed high tariffs on labor-intensive goods and used them as negotiating instruments.

He said India’s trade negotiations also covered services, investments, education, skill development and technology partnerships. These agreements, he added, were laying the foundation for India’s integration with the global economy while protecting sensitive and defensive interests through extensive stakeholder consultations before an agreement was concluded.

Goyal said India’s trade agreements covered 38 developed and relatively prosperous countries, creating opportunities for both sides to trade goods that complemented their respective needs.

The nine free trade and bilateral trade agreements concluded by the government had opened preferential market opportunities in economies with a combined gross domestic product (GDP) of $60 trillion, compared with $10 trillion covered by agreements concluded before 2014.

He said earlier agreements were largely with countries that competed with India, while the current approach sought to build complementary economic relationships. (IANS)