India will sign trade deals only in national interest, reiterates Union Minister

Union Minister of Commerce and Industry Piyush Goyal has reiterated that India will enter into trade agreements only if they align with the countrys national interestsSpeaking at the ASSOCHAMorganised session titled lsquoCreating Global Impact Towards Viksit Bharatrsquo Goyal firmly stated ldquoIf India gets a good trade deal we will go ahead with it If not we wonrsquotrdquoldquoIndia always keeps the countryrsquos interest firstrdquo he addedResponding to questions from the media following the event Goyal emphasised that ongoing trade negotiations were being handled through official channels not the medialdquoIrsquove already mentioned that we donrsquot negotiate through the media we negotiate in the negotiating room Talks are ongoing and once the team is back we will get feedback on the response and the progressrdquo he saidAddressing industry leaders and entrepreneurs during the session the Minister highlighted the need for a mindset shift within Indiarsquos Micro Small and Medium Enterprises MSME sector He urged smaller and larger firms to collaborate for collective progress reported ANIldquoWe need targets guidance and a change in mindset Big or small firms must grow togetherrdquo he said calling on businesses to ldquosupport each other and be vocal for localrdquoGoyal also underlined the critical role MSMEs must play in boosting research innovation quality and scalability in order to compete globallyHe encouraged MSME stakeholders to directly inform the government of nontariff barriers affecting their operations assuring that concerns would be addressedldquoThe government will only be able to act if industry players convey their concernsrdquo he told one participantReflecting on the broader economic reforms the Minister contrasted the current strength of the banking system with the challenges faced under the previous UPA government ldquoDuring the UPA regime the banking sector collapsed under rising NPAs We have restructured it in a transparent manner Today the banking system is robust and performing wellrdquo Goyal said crediting the improvements to reforms led by Prime Minister Narendra Modirsquos administrationIndiaEFTA trade deal to take effect from October 1Goyal also announced that the landmark Trade and Economic Partnership Agreement TEPA between India and the European Free Trade Association EFTA will be implemented from 1 OctoberldquoIndiaEFTA TEPA to come into effect from 1st Octoberrdquo the Minister confirmed in a post on social media platform XSigned on March 10 last year the agreement marks a significant milestone in Indiarsquos trade diplomacy PTI reported Under the pact India is set to receive a committed investment of USD 100 billion from the EFTA bloc over the next 15 years The investment is expected to generate 1 million direct jobs in India according to government estimatesThe agreement provides preferential market access for several European goods including Swiss watches chocolates and cut and polished diamonds which will now be subject to reduced or zero import dutiesThe EFTA comprises four European countries Iceland Liechtenstein Norway and SwitzerlandAs part of the agreement EFTA will invest USD 50 billion in India within the first 10 years with an additional USD 50 billion committed for the following five yearsWith ANI and PTI inputs