Market sources told SSESSMENTS.COM that India might tighten scrutiny on shipments from Chinese companies based in Southeast Asian countries. This report came after Indian customs decided to step up control on Chinese consignments following a military standoff in the border region of Ladakh which killed at least 20 Indian soldiers.
The sources noted that India’s stricter scrutiny on shipments from ASEAN-based Chinese firms aims at ensuring compliance with India’s free trade agreement (FTA) with the bloc. Quoting an unidentified government official, the sources said that many Chinese companies in Southeast Asia merely re-labelled products and re-export them to India, taking advantage of the Indian-ASEAN, India-Singapore FTA.
India-China trade reached $88 billion in the fiscal year ended March 2019, with India bearing a trade deficit of $53.5 billion, the widest deficit that India had with any trading partner at that fiscal year. The latest data showed that India’s trade deficit with China reached $46.8 billion over April 2019 through February 2020.
