India, July 7 -- The India-ASEAN FTA (Free Trade Agreement) was signed in 2009, and since then, we see that the trade deficit between India and ASEAN countries has increased manifold, which remains a matter of concern for India. In 2010-11, India's exports to ASEAN were $25.6 billion, while imports were $30.6 billion, which means a trade deficit of $5 billion, which reached $38.8 billion in 2023-24. It is generally believed that the trade deficit with ASEAN has increased mainly due to China routing its goods through ASEAN to avoid high tariffs and other restrictions imposed by India on Chinese goods.
This growing trade deficit, with China routing its goods through ASEAN countries, has forced Commerce and Industry Minister Piyush Goyal to s...