FTA talks likely to figure in Indo-Mexican meet
Financial Express, India
FTA talks likely to figure in Indo-Mexican meet
By Huma Siddiqui
16 August 2010
New Delhi/Free Trade Agreement (FTA) talks may be high on the agenda when Mexican foreign minister Patricia Espinosa arrives in India on Monday on a three-day visit.
Espinosa will hold talks with her counterpart external affairs minister SM Krishna on issues relating to climate change, intensification of economic ties and the UN reforms. While Climate change will continue to dominate the talks as reported by FE earlier, a senior MEA official said,”While the Preferential Trade Agreements (PTA) with Mercosur and Chile have given a boost to trade, India should consider signing a PTA with Mexico.”
India is at a disadvantage when it comes to exports to Mexico as a large number of countries, with which Mexico has signed FTA, enter duty-free. Since Mexico is the second-largest destination of India´s exports in the region, it is important to remove the tariff disadvantage by concluding a PTA with Mexico, the source pointed out.
“The visiting minister will also have an interactive session with the industry captains organised by Ficci on August 16, which would provide an insight into Mexico’s views on the negotiations as the host of COP16. It will also give the industry an opportunity to have direct interface with her to convey their expectations and concern with respect to the climate change negotiations,” Ficci officials told FE.
India as well as Mexico are expected to raise the issue of free trade agreement as Mexico is keen on foreign direct investment from India in the mining sector. Infact Mexico is seeking Indian FDI in the sector. In 2007, Mexico signed two agreements with India - a bilateral investment promotion and protection pact and a memorandum of understanding to set up a high-level group (HLG) of top public officials and experts to look around for areas of synergy. Mexico wants to conduct a feasibility study to find out the pros and cons of the FTA with India. In May this year, the second meeting on FTA with India took place in Mexico.
The two sides are expected to discuss the ministerial meeting in climate change in November that seeks to clarify rules on sharing future innovations on curbing global warming and existing technologies involving contentious IPR issues.
