Indo-Lanka FTA trade surges to $5 bln in 2012 from $600 mln in 2000
View(s):The Indo- Sri Lanka Free Trade Agreement has resulted in a 10 fold increase in trade between India and Sri Lanka to US$5 billion in 2012 from $6 million in 2000 during this 12-year period, noted Zohra Chatterji, Secretary, Ministry of Textiles, Governmen of India.
She quoted these figures at the signing of the Memorandum of Understanding on cooperation in the development of SMEs in Handloom, Power loom and Textiles between India and Sri Lanka, which took place in Colombo this week.
The event preceded the opening of the 3-day India International Fabric Expo-Colombo 2013 (IIFE 2013), the first of its kind held in Colombo.
Ms Chatterji said that Sri Lanka is India’s largest trading partner in the South East Asia and this is due to the accomplishment of the Indo-Sri Lanka FTA. She said that 45 per cent of this trade consists of garment exports and said that this is an opportune time to capture a larger market share in textile and garment industry.
There are 53 Indian textile exporters, she said, participating in IIFE 2013 from all over India and they all belong to the small and medium sector. She said that the collaboration in the textile industry between the two countries would bring in immense mutual benefits to both countries.
Ms Chatterji said that working together would bring in enough opportunities for both countries as the market for textile industry is always there and is ever growing for economic prosperity. She added that India can provide the Sri Lanka’s requirements of fabric and yarn.
Anura Siriwardene, Secretary, Ministry of Industry and Commerce, Sri Lanka said that Lanka and India have always been together with centuries of bilateral relations as well as trade relations and when speaking of modern times the bilateral trade which was started in 1988 accelerated with the signing of the FTA between the two countries in 2000.
There was a disparity when he quoted the figures of bilateral trade between the two countries saying it stood at $4 billion in 2012 whereas Ms Chatterji quoted the figure as $5 billion, a difference of one billion US dollars.
He said that there is a notable appreciation of garment exports to India during the first seven months of this year compared to the last year’s figures. This year’s figure for the period to July stood at $2.3 billion slightly over last year’s corresponding period of $2.29 billion.
The Power Loom Development and Export Promotion Council, India (PDEXCIL) organized the IIFE 2013. The main objective of establishing PDEXCIL has been to promote the power loom weaving industry in India by its modernization and growth and to market power loom products in the domestic and export markets.
Basil Rajapakse, Minister of Economic Development declared open the IIFE 2 exhibition.
(QP)