Sitharaman Says Non-Tariff Barriers Biggest Hurdle in India-China Trade, Flags Growing Trade Imbalance

New Delhi, Oct 16 (KNN) Non-tariff barriers remain the biggest obstacle to trade between India and China, while the widening trade imbalance continues to weigh on bilateral economic ties, Union Finance and Corporate Affairs Minister Nirmala Sitharaman said on Friday.

Speaking at an interactive session titled ‘India’s Economic Edge’ with Michael Kugelman of the Atlantic Council, on the sidelines of the World Bank-IMF Annual Meetings in Bangkok, Thailand, Sitharaman noted that India had consistently raised concerns over restricted market access for its products in China.

“So non-tariff barriers are the biggest hurdle in the trade between India and China. That is one, and second, if the approach globally that you see today, where imbalance is huge, countries impose tariffs and say, ‘no, we cannot sustain this imbalance, either you correct it or else we are going to be very punitive on you’, that approach we have never taken,” she said, ANI reported.

India Faces Persistent Market Access Barriers In China

The finance minister highlighted that the trade imbalance with China had widened significantly despite years of bilateral engagement.

“The trade imbalance is something which we have been talking about with China now for several years. We are denied market access, even for those goods for which there are immense market opportunities in China,” she said.

Sitharaman noted that Indian products in sectors such as generic drugs, bovine meat, vegetables and perishables have strong global competitiveness and significant potential in the Chinese market.

“But non-tariff barriers have been very strong and China uses non-tariff barriers unhesitatingly, whether it is in the name of phytosanitary measures or any other, for which due investigations can happen, for which due both sides sitting and talking can happen, but no progress is made,” she added.

India Prefers Dialogue Over Retaliatory Trade Measures

The Finance Minister said India preferred resolving trade-related concerns through dialogue rather than imposing countervailing duties (CVDs) or introducing retaliatory non-tariff barriers.

“It is not the way India believes in dealing with trade negotiations. We sit and talk. It is sometimes very tiresome. But we do go through that approach rather than put CVDs, countervailing duties or some non-tariff barriers to counter the non-tariff barriers on the other side,” she added.

(KNN Bureau)