US trade envoy appreciates economic reforms initiated by India: Joint statement

United States Trade Representative Katherine Tai has appreciated the economic reforms by India such as liberalization of FDI in the insurance sector, elimination of a retrospective provision in income tax, and launching of the "Single Window System" for facilitating investment, said a joint statement on Tuesday.

According to the statement, the reforms were initiated by India and have enabled improvements in the business ecosystem and Ambassador Tai encouraged the continuation of market-oriented reforms implemented through transparent means.

Both the Ministers have underlined the importance of establishing a conducive environment for further integrating India and the US to the benefit of both sides.

Tai and Goyal also exchanged information on the relationship between trade and labour emphasizing the importance of trade in creating employment and opportunities for working population.

They shared perspectives on the role of trade in improving the welfare of working people in India and the United States and agreed to work together on issues of child labour and forced labour in global supply chains in order to promote resilience and sustainability, the statement added.

According to it, both Tai and Goyal exchanged views on approaches to increase the utilization of renewable energy and other clean technologies to achieve net-zero emissions, including by aiming to mobilize finance and scale innovative clean technologies as agreed in the India-US Climate and Clean Energy Agenda 2030 Partnership.

They also noted the importance of transparency in the rulemaking process and agreed to explore ways to enhance good regulatory practices. The Ministers also agreed to relaunch workshops focused on accelerating the implementation of the WTO Trade Facilitation Agreement.

The US envoy is on her two-day visit to India that has started from Monday. She was accompanied by Deputy US Trade Representative Sarah Bianchi. This is Tai's first visit to India after she took over the office in March this year.

( With inputs from ANI )