Finland sees good co-op prospect with India

Prime Minister Juha Sipilä on Tuesday said Finland and India have good opportunity for cooperation, said an official press release.

Sipilä held a bilateral meeting with his Indian counterpart Narendra Modi in the India-Nordic Summit in Stockholm.

They discussed various issues including negotiations on trade relations between Finland and India and on promoting investment and other cooperation.

“Finland’s exports to India have grown over the past few years. Prime Minister Modi and I noted that opportunities for cooperation between our two countries exist, especially in sectors such as energy, satellites and education. We have agreed to deepen cooperation in these fields and will hold further negotiations on concrete projects at the level of public officials,” Sipilä said.

The development of economic relations between the Nordic countries and India was the main theme in the India-Nordic Summit.

“I first met Prime Minister Modi in 2016 in India in conjunction with the Team Finland trade mission to India. India is one of the fastest growing economies in the world, and it is important for Finland to continue fostering good economic relations with India. There are many opportunities for cooperation,” observed Sipilä.

In the meeting, Sipilä also raised the importance of free trade; indeed, negotiations on free trade and investment protection agreements are ongoing between the EU and India.

Sipilä also stressed the importance of international cooperation in regard to climate change and counter-terrorism.

The initiative for the India-Nordic Summit of the prime ministers of the Nordic countries and India was made by India. The prime ministers of all the five Nordic countries attended the summit.

In the summit, Sipilä made an introductory presentation on the impact of innovations, digitalisation and artificial intelligence on trade and commerce, jobs and economic growth worldwide.

During Modi’s premiership, India’s infrastructure, economy and society have been modernised. Economic growth in India is forecast to continue to at a rate of over seven per cent both this and next year.

Last year, the value of goods exports from Finland to India amounted to EUR 532 million and the value of imports was EUR 340 million. Finland’s main export products are machinery and equipment as well as paper and cardboard. In 2017, Finland’s services exports to India totalled EUR 747 million and services imports to EUR 534 million.