UK's decision to withdraw duty benefit scheme GSP may impact Indian exporters: GTRI

20 Jun 2023 Evaluate

Expressing concern, Global Trade Research Initiative (GTRI) said the UK's decision to withdraw duty benefit scheme GSP may impact Indian exporters from certain labour-intensive sectors such as leather and textiles as they were the major beneficiaries. The UK is replacing the Generalised Scheme of Preferences (GSP) with a new Developing Countries Trading Scheme (DCTS) from June 19. Labour intensive sectors, including certain textile items, leather goods, carpets, iron & steel goods and chemicals may get impacted due to this.

GTRI said the US, European Union (EU), Australia, Japan and many other developed countries grant unilateral import duty concessions to developing countries under their GSP schemes. GTRI co-founder Ajay Srivastava said ‘as the UK has come out of the EU, it has designed its own GSP scheme. Each country sets a product-wise threshold limit, if a country's exports cross the limit, the GSP concessions stop. The UK withdrawing GSP concessions on labour intensive products was expected as the two countries are negotiating a free trade agreement’.

GSP concessions are available in full to exports from Least Developed Countries(LDCs). China does not get such concessions. He added that the firms, associations and countries request for restoration of concessions but it is rarely considered. He said ‘since the concessions are small, India should stop participating in GSP schemes and stand tall like China does. GSPs are vestiges of colonial mind-set and should be used by only LDCs’. India's exports worth USD 2.5 billion are entitled for the GSP benefit in the UK.

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