CECA to consolidate trade between India & Malaysia
26 Nov '07
4 min read
India and Malaysia are considering the negotiations for an India – Malaysia Comprehensive Economic Cooperation Agreement (CECA) from January 2008, said Mr. Kamal Nath, Minister of Commerce and Industry, India at a seminar on “Malaysia – India Business Opportunities”, jointly organised by Ministry of International Trade and Industry (MITI), Malaysia External Trade Development Corporation (MATRADE), Malaysian Industrial Development Authority (MIDA) and the Confederation of Indian Industry (CII).
To take the trade and investment relation forward, India and Malaysia have set up a Joint Study Group which has recommended the establishment of a CECA, said Mr. Nath.
The Joint Study Group concluded that a Comprehensive Economic Cooperation Agreement (CECA) between India and Malaysia would serve as a plausible institutional framework to provide significant economic benefits to both the countries, said the Minister.
Malaysia ranks as the 23rd largest overall investor and the second largest investor from ASEAN with a total foreign direct investment (FDI) inflow US $ 142.98 million during the period August 1991 to July 2007, said Mr. Nath. India's exports to Malaysia during 2006 – 07 stood at US $1.3 billion and imports from Malaysia at US $ 5.3 billion, he said.
A recently concluded Joint Study has indicated that the two countries could catapult bilateral trade to US$ 16 billion by 2012, he added.
India's major exports to Malaysia include cathodes and sections of cathodes, meats and meat preparations, petroleum oils, onions and shallots, chemicals, cereals, yarns, garments, iron and steel, etc and major imports include petroleum oils, palm oils, electronic goods, wood manufacturers, chemicals and yarns, informed Mr. Nath.
Dato' Seri Rafidah Aziz, Minister of International Trade and Industry, Malaysia said that Indian human resource has assumed a key role in Malaysia's economic development as Indian national account for 19.6 per cent of the total expatriate in Malaysia.
India is Malaysia's 9th largest global trading partner and largest trading partner in South Asia amounting to Rs. 288.6 billion in the current year with a growth of 23.7 per cent over the previous year.
Four Indian projects have been approved with investments of Rs. 20,450 million from January to September 2007, said the Minister.
marketing@alchempro.com
