‘India can give more market access to Bangladesh’

 India is in a position to grant greater market access to Bangladesh and the two countries can forge collaboration to tap the global textile market, industry body Assocham said today ahead of Prime Minister Narendra Modi's visit to the neighbouring country.

The industry body said the Prime Minister's two-day visit is likely to see bold moves take economic relations much beyond the thread of cotton and textiles industry, which dominates bilateral trade.

The Prime Minister will embark on a two-day visit to Bangladesh beginning June 6 with an aim to inject new momentum in the bilateral relationship by enhancing cooperation in connectivity, economic and other areas.

"With such a huge trade surplus in our favour, India can afford to be much more liberal towards its neighbour in granting market access.

"In fact, while a fair competition is welcome, India and Bangladesh can get together in jointly tapping the global textiles market with advantage of cost effective Bangladeshi workforce, while India can provide support in technology, branding, scale etc," Assocham President Rana Kapoor said.

India-Bangladesh trade has increased over the <g data-gr-id="18">years</g> but the share of Bangladesh in India's total imports remains minuscule.

<g data-gr-id="22">Share</g> of Bangladesh in India's exports has remained around 2 <g data-gr-id="23">per cent</g> in recent years. India has consistently maintained a trade surplus with Bangladesh, Assocham noted. "Of the total bilateral trade of $6.65 billion, India's exports comprised $6.16 billion while imports were less than $500 million, leaving a large trade surplus of $5.68 billion," the industry body pointed out.