First India-Costa Rica JETCO Concludes with Focus on Reducing Trade Barriers and Boosting Investments

New Delhi, Jul 8 (KNN) India and Costa Rica held the first Joint Economic and Trade Committee (JETCO) meeting virtually on July 6-7 to review bilateral trade and explore opportunities to expand economic cooperation.

The meeting was co-chaired by Joint Secretary, Department of Commerce, Vimal Anand, and Costa Rica's General Director of Foreign Trade, Adriana Castro.

Both sides reviewed bilateral trade and investment relations and noted that bilateral merchandise trade reached around USD 391 million in 2025-26. They also discussed opportunities to expand trade and investment.

The two countries discussed cooperation in standards, accreditation, certification, food safety, pharmaceutical regulation and export certification to facilitate trade and reduce technical barriers.

India highlighted opportunities for cooperation in pharmaceuticals, digital technologies, manufacturing and innovation, while Costa Rica shared its experience in Central American trade integration and regional trade negotiations.

Both sides agreed to strengthen business-to-business engagement, promote institutional cooperation and use the JETCO mechanism to advance bilateral trade, investment and sectoral cooperation.

(KNN Bureau)