By Paramita Datta
On 18 th December, during Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s trip to Oman, India and Oman finalized a trade deal known as Comprehensive Economic Partnership Agreement (CEPA). According to this agreement, the majority of Indian goods like textiles can be shipped to Oman free of any duty. The pact enables India to export nearly all its products to Oman without any duty. In exchange, India will lower duties on various goods imported from Oman, while certain key products will be permitted in restricted amounts to safeguard domestic industries.
Piyush Ghoyel, The Minister of Commerce and Business, has announced that the numerous key industries employing many workers will receive complete tax elimination. These consist of jewelry, gems, leather, textiles, sports goods, footwear, furniture, plastics, medical equipment, farm products, engineering items, medicines, and automobiles. The ministry further mentioned that the taxes will be eliminated right away on nearly all goods, encompassing approximately 98% in tariff categories.
Oman purchases services totaling to $12.52 billion from foreign nations, with India’s portion being merely 5.31%. This indicates that India has a strong opportunity to increase its services sales to Oman going forward.
Ultimately, the pact will assist in technology, education, healthcare, research, and media. It will additionally help in generating more employment and enhance trade between India and Oman. The agreement also aims to address additional issues that complicate trade, even with reduced taxes.
The Minister of Commerce and Industry, Piyush Goyal also expressed his gratitude to PM Narendra Modi for his assistance and mentioned that India Oman CEPA will strengthen the ties between the two nations which will ultimately allow most Indian products to be sold tax free, provide greater opportunities for service firms, facilitate travel for professionals, and promote growth while protecting India’s interests.
In FY 24 – 25, the trade between Oman and India totalled to $10.61 billion. This represented a rise of 18.6% in comparison to the preceding year.
The pact with Oman will ultimately mark the second Free Trade Agreement established in the past six months, following the one with the UK. These agreements are designed to collaborate with developed nations in a way that does not impact India’s labor intensive sectors and to generate additional growth prospects for the Indian enterprises.