S'pore, India eye free trade pact

S'pore, India eye free trade pact

SINGAPORE (Reuters): Singapore and India agreed on Friday to
study the possibility of a bilateral free trade agreement (FTA)
as part of efforts to forge closer economic ties.

Singapore is a keen advocate of FTAs to keep up the momentum
of trade liberalization. It is due to sign a market-opening pact
with New Zealand next week, is in FTA negotiations with Mexico
and is due to start talks with Japan in January.

A bilateral FTA is an ambitious goal. Unlike Singapore, India
has yet to fully open its economy.

"It is premature to assess the chances of an FTA with India at
this juncture," a spokeswoman for Singapore's Ministry of Trade
and Industry (MTI) said.

But officials said there was clear scope to boost two-way
trade, which increased eight percent last year to S$5.49 billion.