Commerce Ministry Forms A Task Force To Address Trade Barriers For Exporters

An official stated that the commerce ministry has established a task force to investigate and overcome trade barriers being faced by exporters in other countries, a move which would help provide broader market access to domestic goods.

The breakthrough is significant because India’s exports are sometimes hampered by impediments such as time-consuming prior registration formalities and unfair local standards/rules in many nations.

“We have constituted a task force within the ministry where we will be looking at the trade barriers and technical barriers. The ministry has been focusing on how to improve systems, and improve standards”, the official explained.

The commerce ministry is also working on developing mutual recognition agreements (MRAs) with various countries to ensure that product standards meet the requirements of the importing countries.

The official went on to say, “Standards for goods and services should help in promoting global trade and not act as non-tariff barriers”.

According to a report by the economic think tank Global Trade Research Initiative (GTRI), India must act quickly to remove non-trade barriers (NTBs) faced by domestic exporters in countries such as the United States, China, and Japan, to achieve one trillion dollar outbound shipment target for goods by 2030.

It has sought domestic systems upgrades, in cases when Indian products are rejected owing to quality issues, as well as retaliation if excessive norms or restrictions continue to hinder New Delhi’s exports.

“Chilies, tea, basmati rice, milk, poultry, bovine meat, fish, and chemicals products to the EU; sesame seed, black tiger shrimps, medicines, apparel to Japan; food, meat, fish, dairy, industrial products to China; shrimps to the US; and bovine meat to South Korea”, the report reads.

Other products that face these barriers, according to the report, include ceramic tiles in Egypt; chili in Mexico; medicines in Argentina; microbiological reagents in Saudi Arabia; electrical, medical devices, and household appliances in Brazil; and veterinary pharmaceuticals, feed additives, and Machinery in Russia.

The majority of non-tariff measures (NTMs) are domestic regulations enacted by governments to preserve human, animal, or plant health and the environment.

Technical measures such as regulations, standards, testing, certification, and pre-shipment inspection, or non-technical measures such as quotas, import licensing, subsidies, and government procurement limitations.

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