AFP/Washington
India is ready for talks with the US on a bilateral investment treaty to re-invigorate commercial ties between the world’s two biggest democracies.
The announcement comes days after neighbouring China and the US agreed to re-launch talks on a similar bilateral investment treaty.
“Yes, we are ready for it. We are in favour of a bilateral investment agreement,” Indian Commerce Minister Anand Sharma was quoted by the media as saying yesterday.
Sharma was speaking at the conclusion on Friday of the Washington leg of his official US tour.
“Economic engagement in both trade and investment, though robust, is well below potential, given the opportunities a growing economy like India offers and the opportunities in the largest economy of the US,” Sharma added.
Sharma and Finance Minister P Chidambaram have been in the US this week meeting US political and business leaders to pitch for greater investment in Asia’s third-largest economy.
They are seek to spur India’s economic growth which has been running at a decade low of 5% and boost the rupee which has been hitting lifetime lows.
Sharma said the two countries’ target of achieving $500bn in two-way trade by 2020 is do-able. Bilateral trade between India and the US currently runs at $106bn annually.
US legislators and business leaders have been pressing Sharma and Chidambaram to ease bureaucratic hurdles to make it easier for foreigners to do business in India and to step up reforms to liberalise the still heavily state-dominated economy.