KATHMANDU, MAY 24, 2012
China has asked the government of Nepal to hold a bilateral meeting in order to sort out trade problems between the two countries.
The northern neighbour said in a letter last week that the objective of the meeting was primarily to simplify the tariff and transit problems that traders have been facing for a long time at the border quarantine and customs.
“The Chinese team has asked us to fix the date for the third meeting of the Nepal-China’s Tibet Trade Facilitation Committee (NTTFC),” said Naindra Prasad Upadhyay, joint secretary at the Ministry of Commerce and Suppli-es (MoCS). But the two sides have not yet finalized the date for bilateral talks which will be held in Chi-na this time. The last meeting was held in Kathmandu in May 2011.
The second meeting of the NTTFC held on May 9 last year had agreed to remove procedural complexities in enforcement of zero customs tariff and to further activate local-level working groups to wipe out non-customs barriers.
The two-day meeting had also stressed development of infrastructure at major trade points between Nepal and China, promotion of Chinese investment in Nepal, payment facilitation and activating local-level working groups.
Upadhyay said that though the ministry had initially planned to hold the meeting in May, it dropped the idea due to the approaching deadline for writing the constitution and a series of bandas. “We are discussing the next date,” he said. “The meeting will most likely be held by June.”
MoCS officials said the agenda for the meeting was yet to be finalized. “We are working to set agenda and we will soon reply to our Chinese counterpart fixing the date and proposing the agenda,” said a source.
Upadhyay said that the ministry had held discussions with traders with regard to the problems they were facing at transit and quarantine. The grievances of the traders about the customs will have priority in the agenda to be discussed during the meeting.
Officials added that the ministry would try to seek 0 percent tariff facility for Nepali products exported to China.
According to the Trade and Export Promotion Centre (TEPC), Nepal’s trade deficit with China swelled to Rs 38.2 billion during the fiscal year 2009-10 from Rs 11 billion in 2005-06.
Source: The Kathmandu Post
China has asked the government of Nepal to hold a bilateral meeting in order to sort out trade problems between the two countries.
The northern neighbour said in a letter last week that the objective of the meeting was primarily to simplify the tariff and transit problems that traders have been facing for a long time at the border quarantine and customs.
“The Chinese team has asked us to fix the date for the third meeting of the Nepal-China’s Tibet Trade Facilitation Committee (NTTFC),” said Naindra Prasad Upadhyay, joint secretary at the Ministry of Commerce and Suppli-es (MoCS). But the two sides have not yet finalized the date for bilateral talks which will be held in Chi-na this time. The last meeting was held in Kathmandu in May 2011.
The second meeting of the NTTFC held on May 9 last year had agreed to remove procedural complexities in enforcement of zero customs tariff and to further activate local-level working groups to wipe out non-customs barriers.
The two-day meeting had also stressed development of infrastructure at major trade points between Nepal and China, promotion of Chinese investment in Nepal, payment facilitation and activating local-level working groups.
Upadhyay said that though the ministry had initially planned to hold the meeting in May, it dropped the idea due to the approaching deadline for writing the constitution and a series of bandas. “We are discussing the next date,” he said. “The meeting will most likely be held by June.”
MoCS officials said the agenda for the meeting was yet to be finalized. “We are working to set agenda and we will soon reply to our Chinese counterpart fixing the date and proposing the agenda,” said a source.
Upadhyay said that the ministry had held discussions with traders with regard to the problems they were facing at transit and quarantine. The grievances of the traders about the customs will have priority in the agenda to be discussed during the meeting.
Officials added that the ministry would try to seek 0 percent tariff facility for Nepali products exported to China.
According to the Trade and Export Promotion Centre (TEPC), Nepal’s trade deficit with China swelled to Rs 38.2 billion during the fiscal year 2009-10 from Rs 11 billion in 2005-06.
Source: The Kathmandu Post
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