China keen to promote balanced trade with India

India hardly exports USD 30 billion worth of merchandise to China, though the latter imports USD 2 trillion worth of goods from across the globe, said Mr. Kong Xianhua, Consul General, Consulate-General of the People’s Republic of China.

“We are keen to promote a balanced trade with India,” the Consul General said at an interactive session organized by World Trade Center Mumbai.

“Indian companies should look at the Chinese market seriously by creating awareness about their local brands in the Chinese market. I invite Indian entrepreneurs to visit China and identify potential buyers for their products,” Mr. Xianhua said with the objective of exploring the huge untapped export potential for India.

Stating that many Chinese entrepreneurs are interested to visit India to explore new trade and investment opportunities, Mr Xianhua said, “I intend to facilitate bilateral exchange of trade and business delegation to promote two-way trade and investment. I also propose to organize an India-China Entrepreneur Summit in Mumbai to strengthen two-way investment.”

Earlier in his welcome remarks, Dr. Vijay Kalantri, Chairman, WTC Mumbai pointed out, “Economic cooperation plays an important role in strengthening bilateral ties between India and China. India’s trade with China grew from a meager USD 2 billion 15 years ago to more than USD 150 billion. But the major cause of concern is that the official trade deficit with China is USD 100 billion, and more specifically the unofficial deficit runs to more than USD 150 billion as a lot of Chinese goods are routed to India through Hong Kong, Dubai, Nepal, Sri Lanka, and other Asian countries. In order to promote bilateral trade and reduce this deficit, both countries need to explore actionable steps to facilitate Indian exports to China,”

Speaking about the role of WTC Mumbai in promoting balanced bilateral trade, Dr. Kalantri said, “WTC Mumbai can work with the Chinese Consulate General in Mumbai to bring a delegation of Chinese buyers and organize a buyer-seller meet to promote Indian exports to the Chinese market. WTC Mumbai can also recommend visas for genuine Chinese investors looking for investment opportunities in India. WTC Mumbai will also work closely with the Chinese Consulate in Mumbai to process Chinese visas for Indian businessmen. WTC Mumbai can collaborate with the China Council for the Promotion of International Trade (CCPIT) of China to promote bilateral trade and investment. We can also collaborate with the two largest Chinese banks, viz. ICBC and Bank of China to promote their investment in Indian projects. WTC Mumbai also suggests both the governments to explore trade settlement mechanism in local currency to promote bilateral trade.”

In Photo (From left to right): Capt. Somesh Batra, Vice Chairman, WTC Mumbai; Mr. Kong Xianhua, Consul General, Consulate-General of the People’s Republic of China in Mumbai and Dr. Vijay Kalantri, Chairman, MVIRDC WTC Mumbai (left).