Piyush Goyal Criticizes India’s Past RCEP Involvement
Concerns Over Trade Deficit with China
Union Minister of Commerce and Industry, Piyush Goyal, expressed concerns about India’s previous participation in the Regional Comprehensive Economic Partnership (RCEP) negotiations. He stated that India was “forced” to join by the previous government, led by Congress. Goyal made these remarks during his visit to the US.
RCEP and Trade Agreements
RCEP is a group of 15 countries, and India already had a Free Trade Agreement (FTA) with 12 of them, including the ten ASEAN countries. Goyal emphasized that joining RCEP would have been akin to an FTA with China, potentially allowing China to “dump goods into India” and worsen the trade deficit.
Trade Deficit Concerns
Goyal highlighted the significant growth in India’s trade deficit with China from 2004 to 2014, which increased at a compounded annual growth rate (CAGR) of 42.85%. He contrasted this with the slower growth rate of 6.45% CAGR from 2014 to 2024.
Criticism of Previous Government
Goyal criticized the previous government for not recognizing the damage caused to India’s growth. He noted that ASEAN remains a major trade partner for India, with bilateral trade reaching USD 122.67 billion in 2023-24. An upgrade of the AITIGA is expected to further boost trade, with the next meeting scheduled in Jakarta, Indonesia, in July 2024.
Doubts Revealed
Piyush Goyal -: Piyush Goyal is an Indian politician and a member of the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP). He is currently serving as the Union Minister of Commerce and Industry in India.
RCEP -: RCEP stands for the Regional Comprehensive Economic Partnership. It is a trade agreement among several countries in the Asia-Pacific region, aimed at reducing tariffs and making trade easier between member countries.
Trade Deficit -: A trade deficit occurs when a country imports more goods and services than it exports. This means the country is buying more from other countries than it is selling to them.
Free Trade Agreement -: A free trade agreement is a pact between two or more countries to reduce or eliminate barriers to trade, such as tariffs and import quotas, making it easier for them to buy and sell goods to each other.
Previous Government -: The previous government refers to the political party or coalition that was in power in India before the current government. In this context, it likely refers to the Indian National Congress-led government that was in power before 2014.