India, Qatar may finalise terms of reference for trade deal this week

New Delhi, Oct 5 (PTI) India and Qatar are expected to finalise terms of reference this week to start talks for a free trade agreement (FTA), the commerce ministry said in a statement on Sunday.

The issue will figure during the two-day visit of Commerce and Industry Minister Piyush Goyal to Doha. The visit begins from October 6.

Goyal will attend Qatar-India Joint Commission on Trade and Commerce meeting. It will be co-chaired by Sheikh Faisal bin Thani bin Faisal Al Thani, Minister of Commerce and Industry of Qatar.

He is accompanied by senior officials from different ministries and a large business delegation.

The two sides are expected to hold wide-ranging discussions reviewing bilateral trade performance, addressing existing trade barriers and non-tariff issues, and exploring avenues to enhance trade and investment flows, it said.

"The talks are likely to include deliberations on the proposed India-Qatar FTA, with the way forward on finalisation of the Terms of Reference (ToR) for the Comprehensive Economic Partnership Agreement (CEPA) which will further strengthen economic cooperation between both countries," the ministry said.

ToR normally lays down modalities for negotiations of a trade pact.

Cooperation in other key sectors such as finance, agriculture, environment, tourism, culture, and healthcare will also form an integral part of the discussions, it added.

Qatar is an important trading partner of India in the Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) with bilateral trade of over USD 14 billion in 2024-25.

GCC members are Bahrain, Kuwait, Oman, Qatar, Saudi Arabia, and the United Arab Emirates (UAE).

India already has a trade pact with the UAE. A similar deal is likely to be signed with Oman.

Goyal has earlier stated that the proposal for an FTA with GCC is not on the table at the moment.

In February this year, India and Qatar agreed to double bilateral trade to USD 28 billion over the next five years. PTI RR HVA