Commerce and Industry Minister Piyush Goyal has called for a WTO-compliant approach to correcting global trade distortions on the concluding day of the G20 Trade Ministers’ Meeting in Milwaukee, US. Speaking on structural excess capacity and production, Mr Goyal said that India is the fastest-growing large economy in the world, with a domestic-demand-driven economy serving 1.4 billion people. He highlighted that India is building manufacturing value chains from design to finished goods as a trusted link in global supply chains. He said India’s manufacturing capacity serves its domestic and global needs, and India does not have structural excess capacity in the sectors identified by the G20 Presidency.
Mr Goyal said India shares the concerns of many Members that trade-distorting support in some economies can lead to dumping and predatory pricing. He said such concerns are addressed through WTO-consistent measures, including anti-dumping and countervailing duties, based on evidence and subject to judicial review. He emphasised that industrial capacity in itself is not the issue, while distortions can arise where geographical concentration of production is driven by hidden subsidies and support. He said diversification of production and supply chains is a legitimate objective but cannot be used as a pretext for measures outside WTO rules or for shifting the burden of adjustment onto developing countries, which must retain policy space to industrialise. He also said that sharing of statistics and data should take place within existing mechanisms.
Commerce Minister Piyush Goyal highlighted that India’s trade with G20 members depends on a transparent, non-discriminatory and rules-based trading system. He said Most-Favoured-Nation treatment is a key guarantee of this system, ensuring that the same terms apply to the smallest trader and the largest trader. Speaking on ending forced labour in global supply chains, Mr Goyal said India’s commitment to the elimination of forced labour is absolute and unconditional. The Minister reaffirmed India’s commitment to a rules-based, fair, equitable, non-discriminatory, transparent, open, inclusive and multilateral trading system with the WTO at its core. He emphasised the importance of preserving policy space for developing countries to grow and feed their people, while upholding decision-making by consensus. On the sidelines, Mr Goyal held bilateral meetings with his counterparts from Australia, Saudi Arabia, and South Korea, among others. Suparna Saikia, Akashvani News, Delhi.
