The Department of Trade and Industry (DTI) is eyeing to increase shipments, particularly on fast-moving consumer goods (FMCG), to India as part of the government’s policy to improve trade with nontraditional markets.
The DTI’s Export Marketing Bureau has recently conducted an outbound business-matching mission to Mumbai, India, to promote the country’s export items there. The DTI-EMB said it is carrying out efforts to maintain active engagement with South Asian trading partners, particularly India, as it is one of the world’s fastest-growing economies and set to become the third-largest consumer market by 2025.
The office added India’s increasing young population, expanding middle class, as well as rising income levels, are making it ideal as an export destination.
The mission to India was participated by Philippine firms from the sectors of FMCG, such as packaged foods and snacks, beverages, personal-care products, and pharmaceuticals, all of which were identified to have a place in the Indian market. Trade Undersecretary Abdulgani M. Macatoman said the government will continue to press for the expansion of trade between the Philippines and India.
“We are intensifying our efforts to enhance the country’s bilateral trade with India by exporting quality Philippine products and services to this booming market through this mission,” Macatoman said in a news statement.
The mission was intended to directly link Philippine suppliers to Indian businesses operating in the financial capital of the South Asian economy and create further opportunities under the Asean-India Free Trade Agreement. It was also a follow through initiative of the first outbound business-matching mission to New Delhi in 2017.
During the mission, there were business-to-business meetings with members of several trade groups in India, including the Federation of Indian Chambers of Commerce and Industry, All India Association of Industries and World Trade Center Mumbai.
Aside from this, an entrepreneurship seminar was organized that allowed the delegation to link with the Philippine community in Mumbai for potential business ventures. Commercial Attaché Jeremiah C. Reyes urged Filipinos in the financial city to look for business opportunities and adopt the entrepreneurial mindset.
DTI-EMB Assistant Director Agnes R. Legaspi said the mission is but a proof of the agency’s policy to explore nontraditional markets for exporters.
“This business mission to India is a testimony of DTI-EMB’s commitment to diversify our exports to nontraditional markets. Barely two weeks after the mission, we already received reports from our participants on the developments in their negotiations with prospective buyers from India. We will continue to monitor the progress and be in full support of our exporters,” Legaspi said.
Two-way trade between the Philippines and India grew 5.8 percent to $2.37 billion last year, from $2.24 billion in 2017, according to Philippine Statistics Authority data. Exports to India, on the other hand, improved 3.8 percent to $598.53 million, from $576.59 million.