G20: India hopeful of reaching consensus on key trade areas

India is hopeful of a "good outcome document" and consensus among G-20 members on the five key areas of trade and investment at the two-day trade ministers' meet beginning Thursday.

Commerce and industry minister Piyush Goyal said that the members are looking at reaching a consensus on a "Jaipur call for action".

India has identified five priority issues-growth and prosperity, resilient global value chains, MSMEs, logistics, and World Trade Organization (WTO) reform-under its G-20 presidency from December 1, 2022 to November 30, 2023.


"We have been able to come up with significant consensus amongst the member countries invoking a Jaipur call for action," he said, adding that it will help promote industry, MSME sector, upgrade the global trade help desk, and bridge information gaps for MSMEs to help them expand their business and trade.

Goyal was addressing the media at the G-20 trade and investment ministers' meeting in Jaipur on Wednesday. He said the members have deliberated on formulating high-level principles for digitalisation of trade and trade facilitation.

"We are confident that tomorrow and day after ministerial meetings will come up with a concrete actionable outcome agenda, which will help the world withstand any future shocks," he said.

On WTO reforms, he said India wants the dispute settlement mechanism of the multilateral trade watchdog to work smoothly.

Russia-Ukraine conflict shadow

On the Ukraine-Russia conflict casting a shadow on the G-20 trade and investment track outcome, he said that there are realities on which consensus is not possible. "There are some realities on which there is no possibility of a consensus... barring this we are trying to build a consensus on all the remaining priorities," Goyal said.

His statement assumes significance as in February, the meeting of the G-20 finance ministers ended without a joint communique after Russia and China opposed any reference to the war in Ukraine. Also, no communique was issued after the third G-20 finance ministers and central bank governors meeting at Gandhinagar in July.

Bilateral meetings

Goyal held a bilateral meeting with WTO director-general Ngozi Okonjo-Iweala, who is here for the meeting.

He added that though there is a need to modernise the WTO, it should take into account the level of development in developing as well as least developed countries.