A 'Five-year Trade and Economic Development Plan' signed by representatives of the Indian and Chinese governments during the recent visit of Chinese President Xi Jinping to the country seeks to provide greater market access to Indian products across various sectors, including gems and jewellery.

The agreement was signed by Commerce Minister Nirmala Sitharaman and her Chinese counterpart Gao Hucheng in the presence of Prime Minister Narendra Modi and the visiting Chinese premier. It is part of the agreement to reduce India’s large trade gap with its eastern neighbour.

India has been urging China to lower duties on a variety of items such as gems and jewellery, pharmaceuticals, handicrafts, textile, animal and farm products etc.