The current structure of RSEP has been unable to address not only its guiding principles but also many of India's issues and concerns. Therefore, it was not a better option for India to proceed to RCAP. Union Minister of Commerce and Industry Piyush Goyal said this in the Rajya Sabha on Tuesday. In his statement on the issue of being separated from RSEP, Goyal said that the Free Trade Agreements (FTAs) with many countries including ASEAN are also useful for India. He said, 'Our experience has shown that these did not give India the expected benefits. That is why the government is going to review the FTAs from ASEAN countries. ' These countries include South Korea, Japan, and Malaysia besides ASEAN.
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According to the Commerce Minister, in these agreements, India gave these countries immense access to their market, whereas India got less access to other countries instead. Giving the example of FTA with ASEAN, Goyal said that India abolished tariffs on 74.4 % tariff lines, while some ASEAN countries abolished tariffs only on 50.1 and 69.7 % lines.
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The Commerce Minister said that the comparison of bilateral trade with these countries shows that India's trade deficit has increased repeatedly since the date of implementation of the agreement. For example, the trade deficit with ASEAN increased fourfold from $ 5 billion to $ 21.8 billion from 2010-11 to 2018-19. Trade deficit with the RSEP countries increased nine-fold from $ 7.1 billion in 2003-04 to $ 65.1 billion in 2013-14. India's trade deficit with China alone increased 33-fold from $ 1.1 billion in 2003-04 to $ 36.2 billion in 2013-14.
Piyush Goyal told the House that despite this trend of increasing imports, the then government was trying to enter into a trade agreement with China in 2006. The Trade and Economic Relations Committee headed by the Prime Minister was recommended to enter into such an agreement with China. However, it was not carried forward, expressing concern about the widening of the trade deficit.