The EBG Federation, formerly known as European Business Group, is launching its 18th Annual Position Paper on 25th November. Due to the ongoing Covid-19 pandemic, this year event-cum-launch-ceremony will be virtually attended by all the principal guests and key speakers on the scheduled date.
On the trade front, India-EU relationship has flourished over years with the EU emerging as India’s largest trade partner contributing € 92 billion worth of trade in goods in 2018 or 12.9% of total Indian trade, ahead of China (10.9%) and the USA (10.1%). India, on the other hand, continues to remain a hugely attractive investment destination for EU investors and is ninth-largest trade partner for the EU4.
“The existing EU-India Clean Energy and Climate Partnership, the establishment of a formal India-EU climate change dialogue, along with enhanced EU support to the International Solar Alliance (ISA) and cooperation in the International Renewable Energy Agency, offers impetus to India in achieving its ambitious goal of 175GW of renewable energy by 2022,” said Gokul Chaudhri, Partner – Deloitte India, in a message for the 17th Annual Position Paper last year.
Last year, H.E. Mr. Alexandre Ziegler, erstwhile Ambassador of France to India, also emphasized that “This position paper constitutes a useful source of information in a wide array of sectors of the Indian economy, and is, directly or indirectly, related to the priorities of the companies of EU Members’ States operating in India. In this regard, one has to recognize the dynamism of the economic bilateral relationship between India and France in recent times.
The total amount of our trade in goods with India indeed continues to grow, as it has increased by +7.6% in 2018, up to €11.5 billion. French exports to India went up 3,4% last year, reaching €5.53 billion. The good sales orientation was confirmed for aeronautical components, as well as chemicals (+16% to €248 million) and pharmaceutical sales.”
EGB areas of activities include — providing European businesses with opportunities to connect with the Indian Government and industry and connecting business at multilateral levels through business and social networking forums. Dr. Rajiv Kumar, Vice Chairman, NITI Aayog and Cabinet Minister; H.E. Hugo Astuto, Ambassador, Delegation of European Union to India; Mr. Tarun Kapoor, Secretary, Ministry of Petroleum and Natural Gas; and Ms. Nidhi Mani Tripathi, Chief GoI FTA Negotiator, CEO at Price Stabilization Fund Trust and Joint Secretary at Department of Commerce, are expected to grace the occasion. On the other hand, Ms. Rekha Khanna, Director at bioMerieux India and Chairperson at EBG Federation and Mr. Raman Sidhu, CEO, EBG Federation, will host the event.
In last year’s Position Paper, EBG emphasized the urgent need for government support to India’s automotive sector for creating an equitable domestic duty structure in the large vehicle segment to enable greater manufacturing competitiveness and volumes. According to the Position Paper released in 2019, the agrochemicals sector of India has huge potential in the European market.
But, stringent environmental regulations requiring time-consuming registration procedures are increasing the cost of developing new products in the market. EBG suggested the government focus on bringing green chemistry to the farms which is safe to the environment and also to human beings. A detailed 336 pages study on all the key sectors was quite useful to governments and businesses on both sides.
The EBG Federation aims to promote Europe as India’s most preferred business partner thus creating an environment that allows European Business to flourish. In this realm, the Position Paper proposes key policy reforms conducive to the business climate which could further increase trade and investments between India and Europe.
The Position Paper provides European Commission with views of European businesses operating in India and serves as a base reference document for its bilateral deliberations with the Government of India. The Paper is distributed to stakeholders in the Government of India, the European Commission, and to EU and EFTA Member States.
