Commerce and Industry Minister Piyush Goyal will attend the first in-person Indo-Pacific Economic Framework (IPEF) Ministerial meeting with his counterparts from 13 other countries, including the US, Japan, Singapore and Australia, in Los Angeles on September 8-9.
“The Minister is likely to meet top officials from companies such as Uber, Oracle, Visa and Levi’s as well as heads of some VC Funds during his visit to Los Angeles and San Francisco next week,” an official tracking the visit told BusinessLine.
Goyal will also attend the India-US Strategic Partnership Forum conference during his US trip, from September 5 to September 10, apart from meeting top business persons, US officials and industry leaders, as per an official statement issued by the Commerce and Industry Ministry on Friday.
The Minister is scheduled to hold bilateral meetings with US Trade Representative Katherine Tai and US Commerce Secretary Gina Raimondo.
IPEF
The IPEF, an initiative of the US, was launched by US President Joe Biden on May 23, 2022 in Tokyo, comprising 14 nations also including New Zealand, Malaysia, Indonesia, South Korea, Vietnam, Philippines, Thailand, Brunei and Fiji.
While the IPEF will not negotiate tariff cuts, it is to work towards strengthening the four pillars related to trade, supply chains, clean economy and fair economy.
“The meet would focus on strengthening economic co-operation and enhancing resilience, sustainability, inclusiveness, economic growth, fairness, and competitiveness in the Indo-Pacific region,” the statement said.
Framework
In Los Angeles, Ministers will try to arrive at a framework for the launch of formal negotiations, another official said. “Ministers will work at a consensus on what the negotiations will focus on and what all should be on the table,” the second official said.
Some rounds of on-line consultations, both at the Ministerial level and senior-officials level, have already taken place since the initiative was launched in May this year.