India seeks to narrow trade deficit with China

India today sought to narrow its widening trade deficit with neighbouring China after bilateral trade touched $60 billion in 2009-10.

Commerce and industry minister Anand Sharma while saying that India was concerned with the ballooning trade deficit with China, expressed optimism that the rising domestic consumption levels in China will give enormous opportunity for Indian exporters in the coming years.

India's trade deficit with China in 2010 stood at $20.02 billion, up from the previous year's $15.87 billion.

During his meeting with Jiang Jufeng, governor of Sichuan province, Sharma said, "Sichuan province of China is very important from Indian point of view and there is great potential for cooperation between the two regions.

India is an important partner to Sichuan province, in terms of trade, engineering contracting, and service outsourcing cooperation, as well as an emerging investment destination and source."

Sichuan cuisine is well known in India. By 2010, India has invested in 7 projects in Sichuan, with a contracted foreign investment of $10.59 million and actual paid-in foreign capital of $6.55 million, he pointed out.