The meeting of the joint working group on trade between Bangladesh and India is likely to be held in March next.
The upcoming meeting is expected to discuss continuation of duty-free market access even after LDC graduation, withdrawal of anti-dumping duty on jute goods, tariff and non- tariff barriers and trade facilitation.
Besides, Comprehensive Economic Partnership Agreement (CEPA) and annual essential food quota for Bangladesh are likely to be tabled in the meeting.
However, the issue of annual food quota will not be discussed in the joint working group meeting if it is approved by the neighbouring country in the meantime, an official said.
Earlier, Bangladesh placed the quota proposal at a commerce minister-level meeting between Bangladesh and India, held in India on December 22-23, 2022.
The commerce ministry has recently requested the foreign affairs ministry, proposing holding the upcoming meeting between March 15 and April 15 next.
The meeting in Dhaka aims to expand trade, commerce and investment between the two countries, according to officials.
The last joint working group on trade between Bangladesh and India was held in New Delhi on March 2-3, 2022. Comprehensive discussions were held then on various areas of mutual interest.
Contacted, a senior official said various issues, including harmonisation and mutual recognition of standards and procedures on both sides, removal of non-tariff barriers, ports, border haats, settlement of trade in Indian rupees, strengthening connectivity and trade infrastructure, will be discussed in the high profile meeting, in a bid to realise the full potential of trade between the two neighbouring countries.
The bilateral trade between Bangladesh and India was US$18.2 billion in fiscal year (FY) of 2021-22, as against $10.8 billion in the previous FY '21.
The country's overall exports to India reached $1.99 billion in the last fiscal year (FY '22), marking a robust 55 per cent growth year-on-year.
Bangladesh shipped goods worth $1.27 billion to the neighbouring country in the fiscal year 2020-21 or FY '21, according to an Export Promotion Bureau (EPB) data.
The FY '22 export earnings surpassed the pre-pandemic level income, which was $1.24 billion in FY '19, the EPB data showed.
However, the country's trade gap with India continued to widen in the period.
Bangladesh imported goods worth $8.59 billion in the FY '21, according to data available with the central bank.
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