India to raise concerns over silver import rules; UAE assures protection of business interests

In light of the sharp rise in silver imports from the United Arab Emirates (UAE) following the implementation of the India-UAE trade deal, India is expected to raise concerns over the rules of origin under the agreement.

Speaking to the media after the 12th meeting of the India-UAE High-Level Joint Task Force on Investments in Mumbai, which he co-chaired with the Managing Director of the Abu Dhabi Investment Authority (ADIA), Sheikh Hamed bin Zayed Al Nahyan, India’s Commerce and Industry Minister Piyush Goyal stated that these concerns will be addressed at a joint task force meeting next week in the UAE.

Silver imports from the UAE to India surged 5,853%, from $29 million in FY23 to $1.74 billion in FY24.

The India-UAE Comprehensive Economic Partnership Agreement (CEPA), which came into effect in May 2022, has boosted bilateral trade.

Non-oil trade between the two countries increased by 9.8% year-on-year, reaching $28.2 billion in the first two quarters of 2024.

The agreement also spurred foreign direct investment (FDI), with the UAE ranking as the fourth-largest foreign investor in India, committing $3.35 billion across various sectors in 2023—a threefold increase from the previous year.

Conversely, India’s FDI into the UAE amounted to $2.05 billion in 2023, surpassing the cumulative investment of the previous two years.

Goyal further noted that he had already discussed the implementation of rules of origin for silver imports with his UAE counterpart, who assured him that no changes detrimental to India’s business interests would be made to the trade agreement.