India, ASEAN conclude deal for FTA in goods By Jaishree Balasubramanian

Singapore, Aug 29 (PTI) India and the 10-member ASEAN
grouping Thursday announced concluding a deal for a free trade
agreement that will break duty barriers for goods in the 1.5
billion people strong market.

"The countries of East Asia are important drivers of
growth...with large consumption to drive global economies,"
Commerce and Trade Minister Kamal Nath said.

"It took six years for India to understand the
sensitivities of ASEAN, and for the ASEAN to understand the
sensitivities of India," Nath said at a joint press conference
of India-ASEAN economic ministers.

The FTA in goods will be signed at the ASEAN-India summit
in Bangkok in December.

Economic ministers of ASEAN countries welcomed the
conclusion of the Trade in Goods (TIG) agreement which took
six years to conclude.

Negotiations for trade in services and investment as
a single undertaking will begin as soon as possible, a joint
statement issued by the leaders after the consultations said.

"India is ready. The onus is on ASEAN to gather its
team and start negotiations on services and investment,"
Singapore's Trade Minister Lin Hng Kiang said.

The talks on services and investment are scheduled to
wind up by next year-end. Nath said Singapore will coordinate
for the services aspect while Malaysia will take care of the
investment part.

Indonesian Trade Minister Marie Pangestu said ASEAN and
India had come to "a level of understanding never been
experienced before."

She said the FTA in goods paved the way for more economic
cooperation between the two sides. "This will lead to a
greater integration between ASEAN and its dialogue partner,"
she added. MORE PTI JB
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