India-ASEAN Rules of Origin sub-committee meets as trade pact review advances

The Sub-Committee on Rules of Origin, one of eight Sub-Committees under the ASEAN-India Trade in Goods Agreement (AITIGA) Joint Committee, met on the sidelines of the 13th Joint Committee meeting held at Vanijya Bhawan, New Delhi, from 6 to 10 July 2026. It met alongside the Sub-Committee on Customs Procedures and Trade Facilitation and the Sub-Committee on National Treatment and Market Access.

The Ministry of Commerce and Industry said the sessions served as an important platform to deepen cooperation and advance dialogue between India and ASEAN under the ongoing AITIGA Review. The Joint Committee provided strategic guidance to each Sub-Committee and urged expedited finalisation of the outstanding review chapters.

To keep the process on track, the Sub-Committees were given time-bound deliverables and asked to work toward tangible outcomes within agreed timelines.

The main Joint Committee meeting took place on 7 July 2026 in hybrid format, co-chaired by Shri Nitin Kumar Yadav, Additional Secretary in India’s Department of Commerce, and Ms. Mastura Ahmad Mustafa, Deputy Secretary General (Trade) at Malaysia’s Ministry of Investment, Trade and Industry, with delegations from all ten ASEAN member states in attendance.

The ministry said ASEAN accounts for around 11 per cent of India’s global trade, with bilateral trade between India and ASEAN reaching $128 billion in 2025-26.