Goyal-Farrell to work for productive engagement at 13th WTO in Abu Dhabi
Prime Ministers Narendra Modi and Anthony Albanese look forward to swift progress in negotiations and for an early conclusion of an ambitious Comprehensive Economic Cooperation Agreement (CECA), which will build on the foundation laid by the ECTA, including new areas of trade, investment and cooperation.
CECA will create new employment opportunities, raise living standards and improve the general welfare in both countries, said the Commerce and Industry Ministry on 12 Mar 2023.
It also noted that Minister of Commerce and Industry Piyush Goyal and Australia’s Minister for Trade and Tourism Don Farrell look forward to concluding CECA as soon as possible.
The two Ministers met in New Delhi on 11 Mar for the India-Australia 18th Joint Ministerial Commission and were pleased with the progress resolving various bilateral technical market access issues and look forward to continuing engagement to sign CECA soon.
The Ministers highlighted the importance of a smooth and timely clean energy transition as both countries work towards achieving their respective net zero goals.
Goyal and Farrell also noted the complementary nature of Australia and India’s economies and committed to further enhancing economic, technology, and trade and investment cooperation to get to net zero emissions.
Further, the Ministers discussed engagement in the G20, the Indo-Pacific Economic Framework (IPEF) and the World Trade Organization (WTO).
Farrell reiterated Australia’s strong support for India’s G20 Presidency.
The Ministers agreed that the G20 needs to help the world navigate a pathway back to strong, sustainable and inclusive growth, including accelerating progress to achieve the Sustainable Development Goals.
They agreed that Australia and India share high ambition for the IPEF, as evidenced at the special round of IPEF negotiations in New Delhi, and would continue to work together though IPEF on areas of mutual interest, including the clean economy and resilient supply chains.
The Ministers reaffirmed the importance of the multilateral trading system, with the WTO at its core.
They agreed to build on the success of the 12th WTO Ministerial Conference in Geneva and reaffirmed their commitment towards improving WTO functions and having a fully functioning dispute settlement system by 2024.
They agreed to work towards a productive engagement in the run up to the 13th WTO Ministerial Conference to be held in Abu Dhabi in 2024.
Australia and India are important trading partners with bilateral trade exceeding US$31 billion last financial year.
Both agreed that given the trade complementarities between the two countries, there is considerable potential for significantly enhancing bilateral trade within the next 5 years. fiinews.com
