News of

Market News

Indian trade delegation visits Russia to explore agriculture exports.
Apr 25, 2023

A trade delegation from India is on a four-day visit to Russia to explore opportunities of boosting Indian farm and processed food exports from $750 million to $3 billion in three years to balance burgeoning Russian goods imports that saw over 369% year-on-year growth in 2022-23 to $46.33 billion, mainly on purchase crude oil.

Sensing robust demand for food and food products in Russia, a 50-member delegation of the Federation of Indian Export Organisations (FIEO) is visiting the country between April 24 and 27, which will 'further deepen the economic ties' between the two countries, director general and CEO Ajay Sahai told HT from Moscow.

There is a 'massive push' from governments of the two countries to enhance bilateral trade, he said. The Indian exporters are in Russia close on the heels of Russian deputy prime minister Denis Manturov’s India visit last week that revived a dormant free trade agreement (FTA) negotiations involving Russia-led Eurasian Economic Union (EAEU). Manturov is also Russia’s trade minister.

'We see significant demand for India food items, soy, animal feed and processed food,' Sahai said. 'Indian exporters can supply these items. We are also discussing the possibility of rupee-rouble trade.' Other potential areas of exports are automobiles and auto components, he said. The demand for these items have jumped in Russia because many foreign manufacturers and suppliers have shut Russian operations.

The delegation is taking part in buyers and sellers’ meetings in Moscow and St Petersburg, he said. FIEO signed a memorandum of understanding with Business Russia to promote trade and investment between the two nations. Business Russia is an apex industry association representing the private sector.

'The two organizations will cooperate to arrange exhibitions, buyer-seller meetings, workshops, seminars and encourage enterprises to work in tandem with their counterparts for joint ventures,' Sahai said. 'We are looking to increase our agro and processed food exports from about $750 million to over $3 billion in next three years,' said FIEO board member NK Kagliwal, who is leading the Indian delegation.

India can diversify exports to other areas such as electronics, medical devices, solar cells and textiles to reduce the trade deficit, Sahai said.

During the India visit of Manturov, external affairs minister S Jaishankar had highlighted the urgent need to address the trade imbalance created by the recent increase in two-way trade to over $45 billion.

India-Russia trade saw a jump since 2022, mainly driven by India’s increased purchases of discounted Russian crude oil after the producers’ cartel – the Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC) -- and its allies resorted to unprecedented output cuts to keep international oil prices high. Due to Western sanctions on Moscow over the invasion of Ukraine, India and China have emerged as two preferred buyers of crude from Russia.

The two countries have also agreed to revive the FTA negotiations. 'The EAEU FTA is being renewed, which could not progress much due to pandemic,' a government official said, requesting anonymity. Russia-led five-member EAEU includes Armenia, Belarus, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan. A joint statement to launch negotiations for FTA between India and the bloc was signed on June 3, 2017.

In fact, a meeting between India and EAEU was scheduled on March 16-18, 2020, in Moscow after a report of a joint feasibility study group was prepared to launch the negotiations. The meeting could not take place due to the spread of the Covid-19 pandemic, the official said.

The FTA will help the two partners to collaborate in key areas such as oil and gas, gold and diamond, timber, pharmaceuticals, agriculture, aviation, railways and logistics, he added.

hindustantimes.com

Trade Leads

Directory's

APEDA Agri Exchange

News & Analysis

Contact

Trade Leads

Directory's

APEDA Agri Exchange

News & Analysis

Follow Us

Contact