Businesses in Bengal are looking forward to the prospect of local currency trade with Bangladesh amid rising volatility in the dollar. A trade in local currency will bring down the cost of settlement, making it beneficial for traders in both the countries.
Amid a rising interest from the global trading communities, the Reserve Bank of India has put in place a framework for any partner country seeking to trade with India in rupee terms.
Union minister of state for finance Bhagwat Karad in reply to a question in the Rajya Sabha on March 14 said that on date approvals have been granted by the RBI to domestic and foreign authorised dealer banks in 60 cases for opening special vostro accounts of correspondent banks from 18 countries.
These include Botswana, Fiji, Germany, Guyana, Israel, Kenya, Malaysia, Mauritius, Myanmar, New Zealand, Oman, Russia, Seychelles, Singapore, Sri Lanka, Tanzania, Uganda and the United Kingdom.
With India being the second largest trading partner of Bangladesh, members of the city-based Bharat Chamber of Commerce, which is taking a 14-member business delegation to Dhaka on March 18, said a rupee trade with Bangladesh will unlock bilateral growth opportunities.
“I think we are going at the right time. Recently the government has announced that the RBI has allowed rupee trade with 18 countries. If we can have the same facility with Bangladesh, then there is a significant prospect of bilateral growth,” said N.G. Khaitan, president, Bharat Chamber of Commerce, on Thursday.
According to a Daily Star report, initial talks on the matter have taken place on the sidelines of a G20 meeting last month in Bangalore.
The trade delegation will include representation from capital market, coal, textile and garments, power, animal feeds, jute, education and culture, among others.
Khaitan further said that with the support of the Deputy High Commission of Bangladesh in Calcutta, the chamber plans to set up a Bangladesh desk to handhold businesses and facilitate more trade and commerce between the two countries.
