India will seek a series of bilateral trade accords after talks to save a global trade treaty collapsed, BBC Online reports Tuesday.
Trade minister Kamal Nath said the country was already looking at deals with the European Union and Japan. He was speaking after attending talks in Geneva which failed to save the World Trade Organisation treaty.
A number of Asian nations already have bilateral or regional trade agreements in place. Industry groups say such deals have benefited India in recent years and point to exports growing at nearly 20 per cent a year because of a rise in trade with Asian neighbours.
Meanwhile, in an apparent setback for India, the Asean group of South-East Asian nations said on Tuesday it was suspending free trade talks with India.
Malaysias trade and industry minister Rafidah Aziz said that goods India wanted to exclude from the trade agreement accounted for about 30 per cent of South-East Asias exports to India.
