India and Japan sign Free Trade Agreement

Tokyo : India and Japan have signed a bilateral free trade agreement that will witness tariffs on more than 90 percent of goods scrapped phase wise within a decade.

The two Asian giants inked the trade agreement on Wednesday with focus on the textile, drugs, automobiles and the services sectors.

India’s Commerce Minister Anand Sharma and Japan’s Foreign Minister Seiji Maehara inked the trade deal at then foreign ministry office in Tokyo.

The agreement shall “promote a strategic partnership between the two so they can establish win-win relations and achieve growth”, the Japan minister said.

The Indian minister said the pact would pave to promote economic cooperation, trade and investment between the two nations.

“We have noted in our mind that this will usher in a new era of economic engagement, which will bring development, innovation and also prosperity in both of our societies,” Sharma said.

The accord would end tariffs on over 90 percent of Japanese exports to India, such as auto parts and electric appliances, and 97 percent of imports from India, including agricultural and fisheries products over the next ten years.

The deal is struck nearly four years after deliberations began in Jan 2007.

Japan and India also contemplating the lifting employment restrictions between the people.

Sharma also proposed setting up a USD 9 billion fund that would help further develop the Delhi-Mumbai industrial corridor.

The project started in 2007 and is expected to attract investment of more than USD 100 billion and is being funded in part by the Japanese government and Japanese companies.

When finished it will include a high-speed rail freight network, three new sea ports and six airports.