Mumbai, July 25 (UNI) Reserve Bank of India (RBI) Governor Sanjay Malhotra today welcomed the signing of the India-UK Free Trade Agreement (FTA), stating that it would boost multiple sectors of the Indian economy.
Hopefully, it (the FTA with the UK) should help us. That is the way going forward now, because unfortunately, multilateralism seems to have taken a back seat,” the RBI Governor said, speaking at an industry event here.
The India-UK FTA is expected to enhance trade volumes, reduce tariffs, and open up new avenues for Indian businesses across sectors such as finance, technology, pharmaceuticals and services, Malhotra said.
India and the UK on Thursday signed the FTA, officially called the Comprehensive Economic and Trade Agreement (CETA), during Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s two-day visit to London. Approved by the Union Cabinet earlier this week, the agreement is expected to increase bilateral trade by $34 billion annually.
“It should help various sectors in our manufacturing as well as on the services side,” Malhotra said.
Malhotra said India should pursue similar trade agreements with other countries. He added that negotiations with the United States are already in “advanced stages”.
“It should help various sectors in our manufacturing as well as on the services side,” he said, referring to the UK deal. Malhotra mentioned that several other trade pacts are currently under negotiation.
Malhotra praised his US counterpart Fed chairman Jerome Powell for his work on upholding the Federal Reserve’s independence, at a time when US President Donald Trump has gone public with his disagreement with its policies.
“He (Powell) is doing a very good job. Maintaining the independence of the central bank is very important. I think he has done a commendable job,” Malhotra said.
Malhotra said that a government-appointed panel will look into the issue of cryptocurrency regulations in India, taking into account the RBI’s concerns.
“There is no work for a separate currency for the BRICS grouping. Like any other country, India is working on popularising its own currency and the US dollar is here to stay. India has an agreement with the UAE and is also looking at some arrangement with Maldives on the rupee trade. The dollar is here, as you’re all aware, it’s going to be here, you know, for some time, for a longish time. It’s because you need some universal cross-border currency,” the RBI governor said.
