India, China to hold talks over RCEP on Tuesday

Beijing, Jan 21 (IANS) India and China on Tuesday will hold talks on the Beijing-led Regional Comprehensive Economic Partnership (RCEP) about which New Delhi has doubts and concerns.

India's Commerce Secretary Anup Wadhawan, who is in Beijing, will meet China's Vice Minister of Commerce Wang Shouwen to discuss the progress made under RCEP negotiations and efforts to strengthen bilateral trade, according to the Indian embassy in Beijing.

China wants to clinch the 16-country free trade pact by 2019, but India is wary of its market being flooded with the Chinese goods once the deal is approved.

Earlier, the Bloomberg reported that Beijing had sought talks with New Delhi to allay its concerns about the pact.

The RCEP countries make up 46 per cent of the global population and account for 40 per cent of the global GDP.

India has a staggering $104 billion trade deficit with the block.

Meanwhile, China and India on Monday struck a tobacco export deal with China, which is the world's largest consumer of the produce.

The two sides signed a protocol for exports of Indian tobacco leaves during India's Commerce Secretary Anup Wadhawan two-day China visit beginning on Monday.

"Quality tobacco on par with international standards is available in India at competitive prices and there is good potential for export of Indian tobacco to China," the Indian embassy in Beijing said.

Wadhawan met China's Vice Minister of General Administration of China Customs (GACC) Zhang Jiwen and urged him to expedite the market access for other products like okra, soybean, bovine meat, and dairy products.

He appreciated Beijing for expeditiously addressing some long pending agricultural market access issues for Indian products, following the understandings reached on these matters at the informal summit in Wuhan last year between President Xi Jinping and Prime Minister Narendra Modi.