Thaindian News

New Delhi, April 30 (IANS) Uruguay is open to upgrading the preferential trade agreement (PTA) between the Latin American trade bloc Mercosur and India to reflect the new realities of renewed interests and forge stronger economic ties, its envoy to India said Saturday

A new, revitalized relationship between Mercosur will be on the agenda, when India’s Minister of State for Commerce and Industry Jyotiraditya Scindia is in Uruguay on a day-long visit May 2 and meets Foreign Minister Luis Leonardo Almagro Lemes, Uruguay’s ambassador to India, Cesar Ferrer told IANS.

“During the meeting, we hope to discuss that Uruguay would like to be a promoter of a new political impulse between Mercosur and India,” he said.

“There is a PTA between Mercosur and India signed in 2004. But, both India and the countries in Mercosur have changed, become much bigger and diverse economies than at that time,” Ferrer said.

Mercosur, founded in 1991, is a political and economic agreement between the four countries of Brazil, Argentina, Uruguay and Paraguay. Within two months, Uruguay is set to take over the rotating presidency of the bloc, which is the third largest market after European Union and North American Free Trade Agreement.

India’s trade with South America has expanded from $1.68 billion in 2000-01 to $16.6 billion in 2009-10.

There are about 450 items in list for tariff concessions, which could be expanded. “This has to be agreed with other countries… But, we would like to make it a priority during our presidency,” said Ferrer.

Scindia’s visit will be follow-up to the Uruguayan Vice President Danilo Astori’s visit in February. This will also be the second ministerial-level visit from India to Uruguay in three years. In February 2008, the then Minister of State for External Affairs Anand Sharma had visited Montevideo.

Scindia is on a ten-day South American tour, during which he addressed the World Economic Forum in Rio de Janeiro, before travelling to Uruguay and Argentina. He is accompanied by a high-level business delegation.

The Uruguayan ambassador said that there has been much interest from Indian companies to send exploratory teams to the South American country. In next few weeks, senior officials from Tata Motors, Ashok Leyland, Punj Lloyd will be travelling to Uruguay to scout for opportunities.

Similarly, Indian wind energy firm, RRB Energy is also sending a delegation to Uruguay in May. The Uruguayan vice president had visited the company’s Chennai plant and had also signed an memorandum of understanding for cooperation in renewable energy during his India tour.

Swiss-Indian company Zamin Ferrous is also set to commence construction of a deep sea port to begin transportation from its iron-ore mines, through its Uruguayan subsidiary.