Negotiations underway to further liberalise trade under APTA, SAFTA

Sandasen Marasinghe, Irangika Range and Disna Mudalige

Sri Lanka is examining the possibility of further improving the areas of trade and economic cooperation with India and Pakistan, Industry and Commerce Deputy Minister Jayaratne Herath said in Parliament yesterday.

He also said that negotiations are underway to further liberalize trade under Asia-Pacific Trade Agreement (APTA) and South Asia Free Trade Agreement (SAFTA).

The minister was responding to a question raised by UNP MP Ravi Karunanayake. He also noted that Sri Lanka is effectively promoting trade with several key markets in the Asian region including India, Pakistan, China and South Korea.

The deputy minister also said that Generalized System of Preferences (GSP) is offered to Sri Lanka by Australia, Canada, European Union, Japan, New Zealand, Norway, Switzerland, Turkey and the USA.

The benefits under the US GSP programme are suspended to all beneficiary countries as the US Congress is yet to extend the programme beyond 2012, he said.

Sri Lanka is also signatory to three regional agreements namely APTA, SAFTA and Global System of Trade Preferences (GSTP).

In addition, it has also entered into bilateral Free Trade Agreements with India and Pakistan to increase our exports to the respective markets.

The deputy minister also noted that the USA and Sri Lanka have held nine rounds of talks under TIFA since its conclusion in 2002.

The two sides have now been able to engage in private sector as well as in the TIFA process through Private-Public Partnership Programme.