Members of Indo-Pacific Economic Framework for Prosperity (IPEF) have committed to enhance the negotiating schedule throughout this year with an objective of realising concrete benefits, an official statement said on Wednesday.
The officials of the 14-member IPEF held the second negotiating round of talks in Bali during March 13-19. The Indian delegation was led by the Department of Commerce.
IPEF is a US-led initiative with an objective of negotiating rules for tackling 21st century challenges and promoting fair and resilient trade. US President Joe Biden launched IPEF in May 2022. It has 14 members.
The 14 IPEF partners represent 40 per cent of global GDP and 28 per cent of global goods and services trade.
The framework is structured around four pillars relating to trade, supply chains, clean economy, and fair economy (issues like tax and anti-corruption).
The member countries have an option to decide the pillar in which they wish to participate. India has opted out from the trade pillar, while it has joined the remaining three.
Representatives of interested Indian companies also participated in the stakeholders engagement session and Business Forum, organised on the margins of the IPEF Bali round.
In addition, a representative from National Payments Corporation of India (NPCI) gave a detailed presentation at the Business Forum on Unified Payment Interface (UPI), a successful example of Digital Public infrastructure in India.
Negotiators from 13 other countries, including the US, Australia, Brunei, India, Indonesia, Japan, Korea, Malaysia, New Zealand, Philippines, Singapore, Thailand, and Vietnam participated in the Bali negotiating round.
During the Bali round, discussions covered all the four pillars of the IPEF: Trade (Pillar I); Supply Chains (Pillar II); Clean Economy (Pillar III); and Fair Economy (Taxation and Anti-corruption) (Pillar IV).
India participated in the discussions related to Pillars II to IV, it added.
"During the negotiations, the Chief Negotiator of India reiterated India's belief that IPEF will deepen the economic engagement and promote inclusive development through enhancement in trade and investment in the region," it said.
"IPEF Partners have committed to an aggressive negotiating schedule throughout 2023 with the objective of realising concrete benefits to enhance a shared vision for economic competitiveness and prosperity in their respective economies," it added.
Read all the Latest India News here
Comments
0 comment