EVENTS

Economic ties constitute one of the most crucial areas of strategic and cooperative partnership between India and China. Both the Asian giants have grown in the post-reform years by increasing their external economic linkages. Currently, India-China trade stands at $70.59 billion, which reflect tremendous opportunities for traders and investors of both countries in sectors such as agriculture and food processing, asset management, construction and infrastructure, pharmaceuticals, electronics and information technology, and transport and logistics. PM Modi has also highlighted opportunities in railways, smart cities, infrastructure and urban transport for cooperation. For India, there is bigger scope for greater technical and financial collaborations with China in specific “Make in India” sectors like thermal power, renewable energy, railways, construction, ports and media & entertainment. 

Despite many positive stories, one of the most important challenges facing India -China economic ties is the increasing trade deficit, which reached $44.99 billion in 2014. In addition, both China and India are conscious of their role in the world economy as they both seek to play a bigger political role on the world stage. There is a need to identify potential areas of economic collaboration where both India and China’s economies enjoy complementarities. There is a possibility and desirability of India tapping China's vast forex reserves for Chinese inward investment to address India's infrastructural needs, which will help rectify the bilateral BOP deficit through the capital account. The session will explore and critically analyse the future of bilateral economic relationship between two Asian giants.