EU calls on India to drop tariffs

Chris Patten and Yashwant Sinha

The EU has called on India to lower its import tariffs on European products.

It has told the Indian Government that such a move would benefit not just EU companies, but also Indian consumers.

The message was delivered by the EU's external affairs commissioner Chris Patten, at the fourth annual EU-India Business Summit in New Delhi.

Despite lowering customs duties on more than 3,000 goods since beginning free market reforms in 1991, India still maintains numerous high import tariffs.

Hard to do business with

Mr Patten said India should reciprocate the EU's open market stance towards India - some 9,100 Indian lines are now subject to either zero or reduced tariffs.

"The European Union is one of the most open markets to Indian goods in the world," he said.

"European exporters to India, however, do not find trade as easy.

"India retains the reputation of a hard country to do business with - this is largely down to tariffs... still high by international standards."

Indian Foreign Minister Yashwant Sinha acknowledged that India had high import tariffs, but said the government was working to reduce them.

He cautioned however that this would take time, as the government did not want to harm domestic producers.