Dhaka, Jakarta may sign jt statement on PTA soon

A joint ministerial statement on Preferential Trade Agreement (PTA) between Bangladesh and Indonesia is likely to be signed by this month.

Commerce Minister Tofail Ahmed informed it while talking to reporters after a view-exchange meeting with Indonesian Ambassador in Bangladesh Rina P Soemarno at his secretariat office on Monday.

"The Indonesian president is scheduled to visit Dhaka in the last week of this month when the joint ministerial statement on PTA will be signed between the commerce ministers of the two countries," Mr Tofail said.

He added: "Currently, Bangladesh gets trade benefits in the form of duty-free and quota-free market access for many of its exportable products from many countries. But we don't get duty-and quota-free market facility from Indonesia."

He said they requested the Indonesian government to provide quota-free access of Bangladeshi products to its market aiming to boost trade between the two countries.

Secretary of the Ministry of Commerce Shubhashish Bose and other high officials of the ministry were present at the press briefing.

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