India reviews duty sop on Scotch in UK trade deal

NEW DELHI: Govt is reviewing tariff concessions on Scotch and some other products proposed in the trade agreement with the UK if its concerns over steel quotas and duties are not addressed before the treaty is ratified.

"We have to rebalance the FTA... We haven't made up our mind, but we can consider action on certain goods like Scotch, unless they roll back the steel duty," a senior govt official said ahead of UK trade secretary Peter Kyle's visit to resolve the deadlock.

Kyle is scheduled to meet commerce and industry minister Piyush Goyal on Tuesday. Govt is upset at the new measures imposed by the UK after the trade deal was finalised last year with govt officials pointing to the contrast with the European Union, which had offered to protect India's interests given the changes on the anvil.

As a result, the treaty which was to be implemented in May has been deferred indefinitely with no fresh date in sight as Indian authorities revisit the tariff concessions that have been offered. Govt is also expected to seek clarity on the UK's planned Carbon Border Adjustment Mechanism. "We need clarity on it, or we will have to deal with it in Jan, when it is to be implemented," the official said.

In a statement, the UK said that Kyle will seek to advance trading relationship already worth £48 billion ($56.5 billion). "as global conflicts including the continued blockade of the Strait of Hormuz are causing economic shocks across the world's biggest economies, Peter Kyle sees advancing the UK's vital economic partnership with India as a key priority, with significant mutual benefit," the statement said.

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