India is ready to do business with the world, its Prime Minister Narendra Modi said at the India-Korea Business Summit last month, and this sentiments were echoed by Union minister Suresh Prabhu on Friday.
Prabhu, who is in Singapore for Regional Comprehensive Economic Cooperation (RCEP), said India was working with the 10-member Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) on the RCEP.
"India is a very open economy. We want to have trade relationships and trade pacts as continuing as possible, particularly with ASEAN, with which we already have a pact," the Commerce and Industry minister said during a lecture titled 'India's Economic Reforms and Global Integration', reported PTI.
Although these bilateral and multi-lateral trade agreements are difficult negotiations, India wants to be involved, the minister said. "We want to find out a solution but as you can always understand that domestic interest is always reflected into the talks as it is with all countries including Singapore, ASEAN and RCEP (member countries) who would like to protect (their interests) and India would also like to (do the same)," Prabhu said.
"But we are finding a way, whereby we can work together," the minister said.
Prabhu's statements come close on the heels of Modi saying India has created a stable business environment for businesses to enter the Indian subcontinent.
Speaking at the India-Korea Business Summit, Modi said India was on track to become the fifth largest economy in the world.
“Very soon, we will become the world’s fifth-largest economy by nominal GDP. We are also the fastest-growing major economy of the world today,” he said. “We are also a country with the one of the largest start-up eco-system."
Modi added that India was one of the few nations where democracy, demography and demand come together. “If you see around the globe, there are very few countries where you have three important factors of economy together. They are: democracy, demography and demand. In India, we have all the three together,” he said.
Kavon Hussain