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India's Minister of Commerce and Industry, Piyush Goyal gestures as Abdulla Bin Touq Al Marri, Minister of Economy of the United Arab Emirates, (UAE) looks on during their joint news conference in New Delhi, India, February 18, 2022.
NEW DELHI: Encouraged by the successful conclusion of a Comprehensive Economic Partnership Agreement (CEPA) between the UAE and India last week, India’s Commerce and Industry Minister, Piyush Goyal, has said the next step is to conclude a similar agreement with the Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC).
Encouraged by the record speed with which the CEPA was negotiated and finalised, Goyal told a meeting in Mumbai that the Indian government "looks forward to conclude a similar economic partnership agreement with the GCC during this year itself".
Goyal tantalised his audience in Mumbai with the prospect of commercially engaging India with combined nominal GDP of US$1.6 trillion of the GCC countries. "We are also confident of our negotiating ability, we have conducted negotiations in a rapid manner with UAE, and we believe that can be replicated with the GCC." Nayef Falah Mubarak Al Hajraf, Secretary-General of the GCC, had met Goyal in November last year to discuss commercial relations between the GCC and India.
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