India Seeks Tariff Flexibility in ASEAN FTA Review

New Delhi: India may seek flexibility in the existing tariff concessions in sectors, which are impacted by significant increase in imports, under the free trade agreement (FTA) review with the 10-nation Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN), an official said.

The ASEAN official team is visiting India for the next round of review negotiations, which will start from November 19-22 here. The ASEAN-India Trade in Goods Agreement (AITIGA) was signed in 2009. ASEAN members include Brunei, Cambodia, Indonesia, Laos, Malaysia, Myanmar, the Philippines, Singapore, Thailand and Vietnam.

“We may seek some flexibility in the tariff (or customs duty) concessions that have been given in the agreement. Some of the concessions can be taken back and can be given somewhere else because in some sectors we feel our domestic industry is badly getting hurt. We have domestic injuries in some sectors. We would like to do that in a minimum possible way,” the official said.

The domestic steel industry has time and again flagged concerns over a significant increase in imports from countries like China and misuse of FTA with ASEAN. India may also seek flexibility in scheduling the agreement. “We are expecting substantial progress during this round of talks. We have some expectations...” he said.

The third round of the negotiations was held in Jakarta, Indonesia. Eight sub-committees have been constituted under the India-Asean Free Trade Agreement Joint Committee for undertaking negotiations on different areas related to the review of the pact.

During the third round of negotiations, all committees dealing with national treatment and market access, rules of origin, standards, technical regulations, customs procedures and trade facilitation held substantive discussions.

ASEAN is an important trade partner of India with about 11 per cent share in India's global trade. India's exports to the 10-nation bloc ASEAN were $41.2 billion in 2023-24, while imports aggregated at $80 billion in the last fiscal. Both sides are aiming to conclude the review in 2025.

In September, commerce and industry minister Piyush Goyal called for addressing the concerns of its domestic industries affected by the existing free trade agreement (FTA) with the 10-nation bloc ASEAN as the two regions negotiate a review of the pact. Mr Goyal has also emphasised the need to rectify the inequitable tariff liberalisation under the agreement.