The India-GCC Industrial Forum meeting held in Mumbai on May 29, ended with a very positive note with the announcement of India and Gulf Cooperation Council working out Free Trade Agreement.

The meeting was attended by commerce ministers of both Saudi Arabia and Oman.

India’s minister of commerce and industry, Kamal Nath, said the country is in the process of negotiating a Free Trade Agreement (FTA) with the Gulf countries and the talks are likely to be concluded very soon.

Also brough out in the meeting was an important fact that in the last five years, India’s total trade with the Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) countries has risen more than four-fold – from $5.55 billion in 2000-01 to $23.42 billion in 2005-06.

Nath also invited investors from the GCC countries to make the most of the opportunities that India provides by entering into joint ventures in different sectors.