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Sarkaritel.com News and Features
India-Israel for Closer
Cooperation in trade & Investment
New Delhi, December 06, 2006
India and Israel will further expand bilateral trade and
investment relations building on the respective strengths of
the two economies. This was highlighted during discussions
here this evening between Shri Kamal Nath, Minister of
Commerce & Industry and Mr. Eli Yishai, Deputy Prime Minister
and Minister of Industry, Trade and Labour of the Government
of Israel, who was accompanied by a large Israeli business
delegation. Shri Kamal Nath described that Mr. Yishai's visit
is an important milestone in the development of bilateral
relations between the two countries and said this was in
continuation of the process started by the Israeli Prime
Minister Mr. Ehud Almert's visit to India in December 2004
when it was agreed to establish a Joint Study Group to make
recommendations on mechanisms and targets for expanding trade
and economic cooperation.
Several steps have since been implemented including the
opening up of an Indian bank in Israel, finalisation of an
Agreement on Standardisation and initiation of discussions
between the two sides for a Preferential Trade Agreement
(PTA), based on the recommendations of the Joint Study Group.
On this occasion, a Cooperation Agreement between India and
Israel in the field of Standards, Technical Regulations and
Sanitary Measures was signed today by Shri Kamal Nath and Mr.
Eli Yishai on behalf of their respective governments. The
Agreement provides that both sides will cooperate in this
field through harmonisation of national standards with
international standards requirements, facilitation for
establishing scientific and technical collaboration and
elimination of technical barriers to trade. Both sides will
cooperate on the basis of principles stated in the Agreements
on Technical Barriers to Trade (TBT) and Sanitary and Phyto-Sanitary
(SPS) Measures of the World Trade Organisation (WTO), it said.
While expressing satisfaction at the increasing business to
business contacts as well as private sector cooperation
reflected in the presence of several large Israeli companies
in India, both Ministers expressed the hope that bilateral
trade and investment would move substantially upwards from the
current levels in the coming years. Shri Kamal Nath also
raised the issue of long-term visas for diamond traders of
Indian origin in Israel and sought Mr. Yishai's help in
resolving it.
Trade between India and Israel stood at US $ 2.2 billion in
2005-06, of which India's exports to Israel were valued at US
$ 1.2 billion and India's imports from Israel at US $ 1
billion. During 2004-05, India's exports to Israel crossed US
$ 1 billion, registering a growth of nearly 39%.
Top 5 items of exports from India to Israel are: Gems &
Jewellery, drugs, pharmaceuticals & fine chemicals, cotton
yarn, fabrics, made-ups etc., plastic & linoleum products,
inorganic/organic/agro-chemicals etc. Top 5 items of imports
by India from Israel include: Pearls, precious / semi-precious
stones; electronic goods, fertilisers manufactured,
professional instruments etc., except electronic and organic
chemicals. There is considerable scope in sectors other than
diamonds and cotton, especially organic chemicals, plastics
and rubber, electrical component, software, pharmaceuticals
and medical disposable metals and machinery etc.
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