Customs, market access sub-committees meet on sidelines of India-ASEAN trade talks

Three Sub-Committees under the ASEAN-India Trade in Goods Agreement (AITIGA) Joint Committee met on the sidelines of the 13th Joint Committee meeting held at Vanijya Bhawan, New Delhi, between 6 and 10 July 2026. These were the Sub-Committee on Customs Procedures and Trade Facilitation, the Sub-Committee on National Treatment and Market Access, and the Sub-Committee on Rules of Origin, out of eight Sub-Committees in total under the Joint Committee.

The Ministry of Commerce and Industry said these sessions served as an important platform to deepen cooperation, strengthen mutual understanding and advance constructive dialogue between India and ASEAN on trade matters covered under the ongoing AITIGA Review.

The Joint Committee provided strategic guidance to the Sub-Committees in their respective areas and urged them to expedite finalisation of the outstanding review chapters, assigning time-bound deliverables to maintain the pace of negotiations.

The main Joint Committee meeting, held on 7 July 2026 in hybrid format, was co-chaired by Shri Nitin Kumar Yadav, Additional Secretary in India’s Department of Commerce, and Ms. Mastura Ahmad Mustafa, Deputy Secretary General (Trade) at Malaysia’s Ministry of Investment, Trade and Industry. Delegations from all ten ASEAN member states participated.

The ministry noted that ASEAN accounts for around 11 per cent of India’s global trade, with bilateral trade reaching $128 billion during 2025-26.