The Overhaul of India’s Trade Policy Administration– # 1, October 2022

Overview

India’s new Foreign Trade Policy, scheduled to be released by the end of September 2022, has been deferred till the next financial year. The Department of Commerce has been restructured, establishing distinct verticals for different formats of trade negotiations. The two new broad divisions will now be a Trade Negotiations Bilateral (TNB) wing and a Trade Negotiations Multilateral wing. The policymaking role of the Directorate General of Foreign Trade has also been modified. Furthermore, the government has recently proposed setting up a new Trade Promotion Body to spearhead and lend coherence to India’s overall export promotion strategy. A new Development of Enterprise and Services Hub Bill is also in the works, which seeks to revamp India’s Special Economic Zones landscape. This Bill is currently under revision and is expected to be tabled in the upcoming Winter Session of the Parliament. Given these developments, this edition of ONW captures news and developments related to the recent overhaul and restructuring of India’s trade policy administration.