New Zealand PM pushes free trade on India visit
NEW DELHI: New Zealand Prime Minister John Key was in India Monday to push for a free trade agreement that would reduce high tariffs on a range of exports to the Asian giant.
Key, whose country is best known to many Indians as the scenic backdrop for song-and-dance numbers in many Bollywood movies, kicked off his three-day trip with a visit to the Taj Mahal.
On Tuesday he will hold talks with Foreign Minister S.M. Krishna and Prime Minister Manmohan Singh.
The main focus will be ongoing negotiations to put in place a free trade agreement by 2012.
"These things are always delicate and, as we know from the negotiations with Korea, you can hit speed bumps along the way, but I'm confident they want to do a deal," Key told reporters.
Two-way trade currently stands at just $1.0 billion, a figure that Key, who is accompanied by two dozen business leaders, wants to double by 2014.
India has high tariffs on many imports, including New Zealand beef and dairy.
Copyright AFP (Agence France-Presse), 2011
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