1.   

Indo-Pak Free Trade Agreement: Govt seeks fresh road map from Pakistan

Reacting with alacrity to the change of guard in Pakistan, India has urged the establishment there to take forward the Indo-Pak Free Trade Agreement on which the two had reached concurrence in September 2012 but which had been held up by Pakistan's electoral process. "We have told our Pakistani counterparts to chart out a fresh roadmap for moving forward on last September's agreement between our commerce secretaries, as it had got delayed due to their election process," Arvind Mehta, Joint Secretary in the commerce ministry, told ET.

2.   

India-EU trade negotiators prepare for crucial meet in Brussels

Chief negotiators from India and the EU will meet in Brussels on Wednesday to assess the progress in the proposed India-EU free trade agreement talks and try and narrow gaps in contentious areas such as professional visas, market access for cars, grant of data exclusivity status and commitments in retail and financial services. The negotiators will take a call on the next ministerial meet based on what they achieve in the meeting.

3.   

US think tank seeks suspension of trade policies with India

"Strong leadership will be needed from both sides to ensure a continued constructive and robust trade relationship between the two countries," Ezell demanded. In an abstract of the report 'The Indian Economy at a Crossroads', Ezell said India's innovation mercantilist policies, if not significantly modulated, threaten to inflict harm not only on its own, but also the global economy.

4.   

China expected to become world's largest importer of rice

China, the world's largest rice consumer, is expected to become the largest rice importer this year, according to a new report. China's rice imports this year will surge to three million metric tonnes from 2.34 million tonnes a year ago, according United States Department of Agriculture report featured prominently in the Chinese media today. Imports of rice have increased since 2012 as "consumption demand for rice in China has exceeded the supply", it said.