Quickly extend MFN status for bilateral trade, India tells Pakistan.

NEW DELHI: India has asked Pakistan to quickly extend it the most favoured nation, or MFN, status so that the "intent" of the trade relaxations roadmap agreed to by the two countries in September 2012 could be "translated into action".

According to the roadmap, India was supposed to allow trade with Pakistan in all but 100 sensitive tariff lines by April 2013 while Pakistan was supposed to grant India the MFN tag by December 2012.

Pakistan has already overshot the cut-off date of giving India the MFN status by 11 months.

India had extended this privilege to Pakistan in 1996.

"The sooner Pakistan grants India the MFN status, the better it is for bilateral trade," Arvind Mehta, joint secretary in the department of commerce, told the India-Pakistan Economic Relations meet organised by industry chamber FICCI.

"The roadmap for enhancing trade is in place. Non-discriminatory access should be given (to Indian products)...there has been progress. But we still need to translate our intent into policy actions." Mehta said if Pakistan grants non-discriminatory access to India, the government will provide a reciprocal market access to Pakistan at a 0-5% duty rate, similar to what is being given to Bangladesh.

"Pakistan should recognise that by delaying non-discriminatory access to India, it was losing out to Bangladesh," he added.

This is India's most ambitious trade pact offer to any country, with just 100 product tariff lines kept outside the trade basket, unlike other pacts where trade in 900-1,000 products are excluded.

Naeem Anwar, minister of trade in the Pakistan high commission in Delhi, said the deadline for giving India the MFN status was missed as concerns were raised by some sectors such as pharmaceutical.

He, however, said that Pakistan has completed the consultation process with these sectors, hoping that negotiations will soon start again on the matter. Anwar said elimination of the negative list would help in enhancing economic ties as there is huge trade potential between the two neighbours.

He also said that there is a potential to open other points for land trade in addition to the Wagah-Attari route. Anwar called for a liberalised visa regime for smoother movement of businesses.

"It is important for both the countries to have high frequency of visits of businessmen," he said. Pakistan's business community also pitched for MFN status for India, saying every effort should be initiated to boost bilateral trade.

Source : economictimes.indiatimes.com