India should think less on tariffs, more on opportunities to boost trade: World Bank’s Ajay Banga

Bhubaneswar: World Bank Group President Ajay Banga on Thursday said India should “think less” about tariffs and focus more on opportunities, amid concerns over global trade due to geopolitical tensions.

Elaborating on India’s opportunities in trade deals, Banga said over 100 regional and bilateral pacts have been signed by the country in the last 20 years, and the recent India-EU free trade agreement is an example of that.

“Think less about the tariffs, and more about the opportunities like you (India) have done (the FTA) with the European Union,” he said.

Banga’s comments came while interacting with media representatives during his tour of the Central Tool Room and Training Centre (CTTC) in Bhubaneswar.

All trade deals are important, the top World Bank official said.

“If you look at the way trade has changed over last two decades, the global trade has quadrupled, while the share of the emerging markets doubled from 20 per cent to 40 per cent. Therfore, emerging markets like India have now become key components in the global trade,” he said.

India and the European Union recently announced the conclusion of negotiations for the FTA, described as 'mother of all deals', under which 93 per cent of Indian shipments will enjoy duty-free access to the 27-nation bloc, while import of luxury cars and wines from the EU will become less expensive.

The deal, concluded after negotiations spanning about two decades, will create a market of about 2 billion people across the world's fourth-largest economy, India, and the second-largest economic bloc, the EU.