Talks between India and Oman related to the Comprehensive Economic Partnership Agreement (CEPA) have made substantive cooperation.
At a special briefing at the end of bilateral level talks between Prime Minister Narendra Modi and the Sultan of Oman, Haitham bin Tarik in New Delhi, Foreign Secretary Vinay Kwatra said: “Although the negotiations on CEPA have started only recently, they have made substantial progress in the last few rounds of discussion. Adding, “Both leaders gave strong impetus and push to conclude the CEPA agreement as early as possible…”
What did PM Modi say about CEPA?
Noting the positive progress on the Comprehensive Economic Partnership Agreement (CEPA), PM Modi expressed happiness and said that two rounds of discussion have been successfully completed, in which many important issues have been agreed upon. “I hope that we will soon be able to sign this agreement which will add a new dimension to our economic cooperation…” he added.
How will the Trade Grow between the two countries after CEPA?
The Gulf country is looking to sign a trade deal similar to the deal which India has inked with the UAE in 2022.
Though the India-GCC FTA negotiations have restarted there has been very little progress and the member nations are keen on inking bilateral trade agreements.
So far two rounds of negotiations have successfully completed and as Prime Minister Narendra Modi mentioned on Saturday almost all matters have been streamlined. The trade talks between the two countries were expedited in November last month when a formal meeting took place on Nov 20. This was then followed by the first official round of negotiations in New Delhi from Nov 27-29. Earlier this week ahead of the visit the second round of talks took place in Muscat between Dec 9-11.
The trade potential between the two countries is immense, as within GCC it is India’s third largest partner. According to FS Kwatra the bilateral trade between the two countries in 2022-23 was USD 12.50 bn. This is up from USD 5.4 bn in 2021.
There are more than 6000 joint ventures between the two countries in various sectors with an estimated investment of more than USD 7.5 billion.
India and Oman enjoy a robust bilateral economic tie and both are engaged in various trade and investment projects including renewable energy, green hydrogen, overall development of the IT industry among others.