India's new FDI norms against WTO's principle of free trade: China
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The government has made its nod compulsory for all foreign direct investment coming from neighbouring countries including China.
India's new policy for foreign direct investment (FDI) from specific countries was against the consensus arrived at the G20 to realise a free, fair and non-discriminatory environment for investment, a Chinese embassy spokesperson said on Monday.
The policy also violated WTO's principle of non-discrimination and are against the general trend of free trade, she said and added, the impact of the policy, introducing "additional barriers", was clear on Chinese investors,
Last week, India made it mandatory to have prior clearance by the government for foreign investments from countries that share land border with India to curb "opportunistic takeovers" of domestic firms following the coronavirus pandemic.
A PTI report quoting the Chinese embassy spokesperson Ji Rong said that China hoped that India would revise the "relevant discriminatory practices" and treat investments from different countries equally while fostering an "open, fair and equitable" business environment.
With an aim is to curb the opportunistic takeover of Indian companies whose valuations have come down due to the coronavirus pandemic, the government has made its nod compulsory for all foreign direct investment coming from neighbouring countries including China.
"The additional barriers set by Indian side for investors from specific countries violate WTO's principle of non-discrimination, and go against the general trend of liberalisation and facilitation of trade and investment," Chinese embassy Spokesperson Ji Rong said in a statement.
She said China hoped that India would revise the "relevant discriminatory practices" and treat investments from different countries equally while fostering an "open, fair and equitable" business environment.
"Chinese investment has driven the development of India's industries, such as mobile phone, household electrical appliances, infrastructure and automobile, creating a large number of jobs in India, and promoting mutual beneficial and win-win cooperation," Ji said.
The spokesperson said China's cumulative investment in India has exceeded USD 8 billion, noting it is far more than the total investments by countries sharing border with India.
(With inputs from PTI)