Bangladesh to sign FTA with India this year

Bangladesh hopes to sign a free trade agreement with India this year, its Commerce Secretary Md Ghulam Hussain said here.

"We have agreed that the FTA will be good for both the countries," he said after addressing a Singapore seminar on investment in Bangladesh.

FTA documents have been exchanged and negotiations were underway, he said but declined to give a specific timeframe for signing the FTA.

Bangladesh is also negotiating FTAs with Saudi Arabia, Kuwait, Pakistan, Sri Lanka and Malaysia, he said.

Speaking at the business seminar, Hussain highlighted Dhaka government's pro-business approach and called for investments in ports, power and infrastructure sector.

Public Private Partnership will be encouraged, he said.

Diplomatic observers see strong potential for business and investments in Bangladesh through the FTAs but said that the political differences among South Asian countries are delaying such trade collaborations and cooperations.

March 3^rd, 2011

Source: ptinews.com