Page 10 - Bullion World Volume 02 Issue 08 September 2022
P. 10
Bullion World | Volume 2 | Issue 09 | September 2022
Facilitating Gems and
Jewellery Exports Through
Trade Agreements: India-UAE
Comprehensive Economic
Partnership Agreement (CEPA)
Arpita Mukherjee and Eshana Mukherjee
As India embarks on the path of pandemic related supply chain
signing trade agreements with its disruption and growing competition
key export markets, exporters are from certain countries like the Turkey
optimistic about the benefits of tariff in light weight gold jewellery.
reduction on enhancing their export
competitiveness in markets such While there seems to be an
as the United Arab Emirates (UAE). immediate gain, an impact of any
After the India-UAE Comprehensive trade agreement must be looked
Economic Partnership Agreement in the context of rise in exports,
(CEPA) came into effect on May imports, development of value
01, 2022, there has been a surge chains and in attracting investment.
in gems and jewellery exports to In the case of gems and jewellery,
the UAE. For example, exports of India does not have the key raw
Mrs Arpita Mukherjee ‘gold jewellery’ saw an increase of materials, and is a net importer of
Professor, ICRIER 17 percent, from April to June 2022, gold and diamond. India is among
compared to a fall of 37 percent the top global processing hubs.
between April and June in 2021. Under the India-UAE CEPA, India
The CEPA agreement reduced the has given phased tariff elimination
import duty on jewellery, including and specified tariff rate quota for
‘gold jewellery’ and ‘cut and polished imports from UAE. ‘Gold jewellery’
diamonds,’ exported from India to imports are now allowed, up to 2.5
the UAE, from five percent to zero. tonnes, at one percent duty less than
This seems to have helped the Indian applicable, over 10 years. For other
exporters who have been facing a jewellery items such as ‘cut and
tough time due to the COVID-19 polished diamonds’, select ‘coloured
Authors can be reached at
Arpita@icrier.res.in and Emukherjee@icrier.res.in respectively. Views are personal.
10
