India is holding an inter-ministerial consultation to prepare an “offer list” to be part of the revamp of the India-South Korea free trade agreement (FTA), government sources said on Monday, June 24.
According to the sources, the consultation is being held with the ministries of steel, heavy industries, chemicals and finance to prepare such an offer list to be exchanged between India and South Korea when upgrading the FTA, called the Comprehensive Economic Cooperation Agreement (CEPA).
The sources said that India has sought greater market access for certain products such as steel, rice, and shrimp from South Korea with a view to boosting exports of these goods, and at the same time has flagged concerns that South Korea is not buying sufficient steel from India.
The upgrade of the CEPA will include implementation issues, rules of origin, the verification process and the release of consignments, customs procedures, the further liberalisation of trade in goods, and sharing and exchange of trade data, the sources said.