India Deepens Trade Links With Singapore, Asean, Amid US Tariff Headwinds

(MENAFN– Live Mint) New Delhi: India is strengthening its economic engagement across Asia, holding trade talks with Singapore and the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (Asean) to expand market access, update trade agreements and enhance cross-border connectivity.

The outreach comes as New Delhi braces for the impact of recently announced US reciprocal tariffs on a range of Indian goods, a move that could pressure export earnings in one of the country’s largest markets.

The measures have also sharpened the government’s focus on diversifying trade relationships and deepening ties with fast-growing Asian partners.

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The commerce ministry said on Friday that India had, a day earlier, hosted the 4th meeting of the India-Singapore Joint Working Group on Trade & Investment (JWGTI), where senior officials discussed trade facilitation, investment promotion, supply-chain resilience and regulatory streamlining.

The talks, co-chaired by Rajesh Agrawal, India’s special secretary in the commerce department, and Beh Swan Gin, Singapore’s permanent secretary for trade and industry, came as the two countries marked 60 years of diplomatic relations and 20 years of their Comprehensive Economic Cooperation Agreement (CECA).

The JWGTI followed a ministerial roundtable between the two nations a day earlier, reinforcing Singapore’s role as a regional trade and investment hub and India’s position as one of the fastest-growing large economies, the commerce ministry said.

“Discussions during the JWGTI focused on deepening bilateral trade and investment ties, identifying priority sectors for greater alignment, improving logistics and supply chains, streamlining regulatory frameworks, and exploring ways to facilitate cross-border trade,” it added.

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At the same city, from 10 to 14 August, India hosted the tenth meeting of the Asean-India Trade in Goods Agreement (AITIGA) joint committee, alongside seven sub-committee sessions aimed at updating the 15-year-old pact.

Co-chaired by Nitin Kumar Yadav, India’s additional secretary in the commerce department, and Mastura Ahmad Mustafa, Malaysia’s deputy secretary general for trade, the discussions built on eight previous negotiating rounds.

The review aims to make AITIGA more effective, accessible, and conducive to trade, with technical discussions covering customs procedures, market access, sanitary and phytosanitary measures, rules of origin, technical standards, and trade remedies, the commerce ministry said.

To be sure, the Asean bloc and Singapore remain key trading partners for India.

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In FY25, India’s goods exports to Asean, of which Singapore is a member, fell 5.45% year-on-year to $38.96 billion, while imports rose 5.64% to $84.16 billion, according to commerce ministry data.

The next AITIGA joint committee meeting will be held on 6-7 October at the Asean Secretariat in Jakarta, Indonesia, with Malaysia as the host.

According to the data, Singapore is India’s largest trading partner within Asean, with total bilateral trade of $34.26 billion during 2024-25.

It is also India’s second-largest source of foreign direct investment, with equity inflows of $163.85 billion ( ₹11.24 trillion) between April 2000 and July 2024, accounting for about 24% of India’s cumulative inflows.