International Economics

INDUSTRY AN INTRODUCTION #

International economics is a branch of econom- ics with two main sub disciplines/ international trade and international finance. International finance is a study of the exchange of currencies and flow of money or capital across international boundaries. Trade across borders or between countries is called as international trade. It involves selling and buying of goods and services between countries. Goods and services involved in international trade are called as Exports and Imports. The commodities which are produced domestically and sent to other countries as per the demand are called as Exports. Commod- ities produced in other countries and which enter our country in trade is called as Imports. The rate at which one country’s goods are exchanged for another country’s goods is known as Terms of Trade. In other words, it is the rate of exchange between exports and imports of a country. It expresses the relation between export and import prices. If the price of exports is relatively higher than that of imports, the terms of trade is said to be favourable. And it becomes unfavorable, if import prices are higher than export prices. Balance of Trade is the record of country’s export and imports of goods and services both visible and invisible.

FOREX RESERVES #

To buy goods or imports from other countries a country has to pay for it in the currency of the country from which goods are bought. Because of this reason a country has to maintain forex reserves. The reserve of gold and foreign currencies like Dollar, Euro, Pounds, Marc, Francs, etc available within the country is called as forex reserves, coun- try should have enough forex reserves to meet its

international obligations. If the forex reserves are very less the country might enter into crisis, which happened in India in 1991. The forex reserves are maintained by the Reserve Bank of India. The total forex reserves that are available to the monetary authorities of different countries for meeting their international payments and currencies which are used internationally such as dollars, sterling, euro, etc along with facilities to borrow them is known as, International Liquidity. Foreign Currencies are also available in Forex Market, which is the market for foreign exchange. It is a place where foreign currencies are bought and sold.

EXCHANGE RATE #

Buying and selling of foreign currencies necessi- tates the need of exchange rate. Exchange Rate is the price of currency of one country in terms of another. The rate at which currencies of two countries are exchanged is called as exchange rate. For eg: 1$ = 50 Rupees. Exchange rates are determined through different mechanisms like free or flexible or floating exchange rates or fixed exchange rates.

Free or Flexible/floating Exchange rates are determined by the conditions of demand for and supply of foreign exchange. Here, the exchange rate is free to fluctuate according to the changes in demand or supply forces, if there are no restric- tions on buying and selling in the foreign exchange market.

Fixed Exchange Rate are fixed or determined by the government.

Changes in the exchange rate are to bring about desired changes like devaluation of currency to cor- rect balance of payments problem, control on forex reserves to affect demand and supply position, etc.

A country as per its economic policy follows anyone of the mechanisms. For eg: if a country’s economy is market driven, it follows free or flexible exchange rates.

Purchasing Power parity is one of the criteria for determining the exchange rate between two currencies. The exchange rate is determined by the amount of money required to buy a bundle of goods with home currency and foreign currency. For eg, If a bundle or set of goods cost Rs. 5000 in India and the same costs $100 in USA, then the rate of exchange will be Rs.50 = $1. Thus, the purchasing power of the currencies is used to determine the exchange rate.

EXIM POLICY #

The Government of a country provides guide- lines on importing and exporting of goods and services, envisaged in Exim Policy. The policy of the government regarding exports and imports are spell out in the Exim Policy. There is need for Exim policy because the international trade activities of a country can have serious implications on its domestic economy. Like, the domestic price of a commodity which is exported in excess might raise leading to inflation. If imports are excess, the need for forex reserves increases leading to Balance of Payments problem. The major policy thrusts in India have been on Export promotion and Import substitution. Import Substitution means producing of goods/services within the country instead of getting them from some other countries. The policy of import substitution was followed mainly to save foreign exchange that was going to other countries for getting imports but with advent of world Trade Organization (WTO), globalization and liberalization the policy of import substitution has lost its vigor.

Giving boost to the expansion of exports is called Export Promotion. Under export promotion policy, government supports manufacturing units and other producers who produce goods which have demand in other countries. For eg: Export zones- where government provides lot of benefits and subsidies to producers producing for the sake of exports; Spe- cial economic zones also serve the same purpose. The Government of India has established financial institutions Export Import Bank of India (Exim Bank)

and Export Credit Guarantee Corporation of India (ECGC of India Limited) for providing financial assistance to exporters and importers, and improves the quantum of international trade. ECGC of India Limited was established in 1957 by the government of India to strengthen the export promotion drive by covering the risk of exporting on credit. Major functions of ECGC are:

1. it offers guarantees to banks and financial in- stitutions to enable exporters to obtain better facilities from them.
2. Provides a range of credit risk insurance covers to exporters against loss in export of goods and services and
3. Provides Overseas Investment Insurance to Indian companies investing in joint ventures abroad in the form of equity of loan.

Special Economic Zones (SEZ)

A policy was introduced on 1st April 2000 for setting up of special economic zones in the country with a view to provide an internationally competitive and free environment for exports, Units may be setup in SEZs for manufacturing of goods and rendering of services. The policy provides for’ setting up of SEZs in the public, private, joint sector or by the state governments. Private sector is invited to develop infrastructure facilities in the SEZs. The State Government will take’ a lead role in setting up of SEZs. The SEZ Act, 2005 has received Pres- ident’s assent on June 23rd 2005.

BALANCE OF PAYMENTS [BOP] #

The international economic activities or transac- tions of a country are recorded regularly for a given period of time usually one year. Such a record is known as Balance of Payments. Balance of Payments (BOP) of a country is the systematic record of all international economic transactions of that country during a given period, usually one year. A balance of payments statement includes two accounts namely the current account and the capital account.

The current Account consists of two sub groups namely:

• Merchandise or trade account and
• Invisible account.

In the trade or merchandise account, only the transactions relating to goods are entered. That is, all goods exported and imported are recorded in the trade account. The invisible account usually consists of services account and the gifts or charities account. The services account records all the services exported and imported by residents of the nation. It consists of items like banking and insurance charges, interest on loans, tourist expenditure, transport charges etc., The gifts or charities account consists of items received or given away free by residents of the nation. It may be in cash or kind.

Following items are on the current account of BOP as per International Monetary

1. Merchandise imports and exports.
2. Foreign travel
3. Transportation
4. Insurance
5. Investment Income.
6. Government purchases and sales of goods and services, and miscellaneous items like earnings and payment on motion picture roy- alties, telephone and telegraph service, man- agement, business and contractor’s fee etc.

Capital Account consists of all financial transactions. Its components are:

• Private Capital accounts, in which the private balances held by the corporate bodies or com- mercial banks, are recorded. Both short term and long-term capital movements are included.
• The short and long-term assistance from in- ternational institutions, and
• Capital transactions of government and movement of gold bullion.

Current Account Convertibility is one of the important measures of liberalization in the Indian economy. Current account convertibility means convertibility of rupee/foreign exchange earned on current account. Capital Account Convertibility is the freedom to convert domestic financial assets into overseas financial assets at market-determined rates. In simple way, it allows any Indian resident to go to a foreign exchange dealer or Bank and freely convert rupees into dollars, pounds or Euros to acquire assets

abroad. The overseas assets can be equity, bonds, property or ownership of overseas firms.

Any deficit or surplus in BOP refers only to the difference between the receipts from and payments to the foreigners by the residents of a country.

B = Rr – Pr

Where B = Balance of Payments, Rr = Receipts from foreigners and

Pr = Payments made to foreigners.

If Rr – Pr = 0, then there is equilibrium in BOP and if Rr – Pr > 0, then there is surplus in BOP and if Rr – Pr < 0, it is deficit BOP.

The surplus BOP is favourable to a country. But a deficit in BOP should not be neglected, as it can lead to a major crisis in the long run. Adverse/deficit BOP can be corrected to some extent by resorting to Devaluation and raising tariff levels on imports. Devaluation is reducing the value of a currency in terms of foreign currency. It is done by the monetary authority which controls the foreign exchange of a country. For eg if $1 = Rs 40, after devaluation the value of 1$ will be greater than Rs 40. Devalua- tion helps to correct BOP position in two ways. It increases exports and reduces imports. The imports will be reduced due to increase in their price in terms of home currency. Same way exports cost cheaper to foreigners than before and its demand increases.

If a country does not want to get into BOP problem, it should have enough foreign reserves. A country can get foreign exchange either through exports, foreign aid or foreign capital. Foreign cap- ital is the money or capital flowing into domestic economy from other countries. Foreign capital takes many forms like:

Under Foreign Direct investment (FDI) the con- cerns/firms of the investing country exercise some form of control over the assets, created in the cap- ital importing country through its investments. The assets created can be in the form of a subsidiary of a company of investing country, a corporation or fixed assets. The activities of the Multinational or Trans National corporations come under Foreign Direct Investment. Multinational Corporations (MNCs) and Transnational Corporations (TNCs) are the Corpo- rations which have their activities in more than one

country. They bring in direct foreign investment to developing and other nations. Eg: Pepsi Co, Coca cola co, Monsanto etc.

Foreign Investment Promotion Board (FIPB) is the special board set up by the Government of India in the office of the Prime Minister. It is the only agency dealing with matters relating to FDI as well as promoting investment in the country. Its main objective is to promote FDI into India by facil- itating investment through international companies, Non-Resident Indians and other foreign investors.

Foreign Aid refers to public foreign capital on hard and soft terms, in cash on kind and intergovern- mental grants. The assistance coming from foreign countries and international organizations like IDA, ADB, OECD, USAID (United States agency for International Development) etc. is known as foreign aid. Aid is different from usual market loan. Softer terms refer to extended grace period, lower interest rates and so on.

Indirect investment or Portfolio investment- It consists mainly of the holding of transferable securities, shares or debentures by the nationals of some other country. The shareholders are entitled for dividend and do not have a right over the company.

Public foreign capital consists of:

• bilateral hard loans – loans from foreign gov- ernments on market terms.
• Bilateral soft loans – loans from foreign gov- ernments on softer terms Eg: PL480 from USA and
• Multilateral loans – loans that come to a coun- try from number of foreign governments and international organizations. Eg: Aid India Consortium formed by World Bank to get multilateral loans to India.

TRADE BARRIERS #

Tax and duties are levied on goods produced and exchanged in trade, either internal or international. They impose restrictions and barriers on trade. Tariffs are the taxes imposed on the imports of a country. If a country wants to restrict imports it can do so by increasing the tariff rates. When tariff rates are increased, the prices of imported goods increase and hence their demand falls. Tariff rates will be reduced

to increase the flow of imports in a country. Quotas are quantitative restrictions on imports and exports. It limits the amount or quantity of imports entering our country. For eg: Indian government might fix a quota of 10 quintals on rice imported from China. It means only a maximum of 10 quintals of rice will be imported by India.

Imposition of tariffs and other trade barriers by different countries affects the quantum of international trade and thereby the growth of countries. To reduce tariff levels and other trade barriers countries try to integrate economically. Under Economic Integration most of the countries or producers get together for the sake of trade. They try to reduce tariff and other international trade related barriers among themselves and thereby increase the quantum of trade. Important forms of international economic integration are: 1. Free trade areas. 2. Customs unions 3. International Cartels and 4. Common market.

Free Trade Area: It is an area where the group of countries have come together and abolished all tariff barriers amongst themselves but each country can impose any level of tariff against other countries. Eg: North American Free. Trade Area (NAFTA), European Free Trade Association (EFTA), Latin American Free Trade Association (LAFTA) and South Asian Free Trade Association (SAFTA, not yet in operation).

Customs Union

A customs union is an agreement between mem- bers of a group of nations to abolish all custom duties or tariffs among themselves and establishing common tariffs on imports from non-member countries.

International Cartel

An international cartel is formed by producers who are in same line of production but operating in different countries. They agree to get together, to regulate production and sales for monopolistic benefits. They restrict output to certain levels so as to maximize the profits through higher price levels. Eg: Cartel among oil producers of the world.

Common Market

The highest form of economic integration is the common market. Here the countries which get together become a common market. There will be

no barriers to the entry of labour, capital, goods and services within the member countries of the common market. They follow uniform tariff policy to the out- side world or non-members. Eg: European Common Market or European Economic Community.

Apart from economic integration there are regional associations, where countries of particular region of the world get together both for economic and non- economic reasons. Some of the important regional associations are:

South Asian Association for Regional Coop- eration (SAARC, 1985): The member countries are India, Pakistan, Srilanka, Bangladesh, Bhutan and Nepal.

Association of South East Asian Nations (ASEAN, 1959) was formed among Brunei, Malay- sia, Indonesia, Philippines, Singapore, Thailand and Vietnam to accelerate economic growth in the region through joint Endeavour in the spirit of equality and partnership.

Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD) is a forum permitting Governments of the industrialized democracies to study and formulate the best polices possible in all economic and social spheres. It is referred as rich countries club.

Organization of Petroleum Exporting Coun- tries (OPEC) was up of eleven developing nations, whose economies rely on oil export revenue. The primary mission of OPEC is to achieve stable oil prices, which are fair and for producers and consum- ers. OPEC’s mission is to coordinate the petroleum policies of member countries and ensure the stabi- lization of oil prices in order to secure an efficient, economic and supply of petroleum to consumers, a steady income to producers and a fair return on capital to those investing in the petroleum industry.

Organizations of Arab Petroleum Exporting Countries (OAPEC) was established in 1968 with the major goals: #

1. to promote cooperation and close ties be- tween the member countries in economic ac- tivities related to the oil industry;
2. to determine ways of safeguarding their le- gitimate interests, both individual and collec- tive, in the oil industry;

• to unite their efforts so as to ensure the flow of oil to consumer markets on equitable and reasonable terms; and
• to create a favorable climate for the invest- ment of capital and expertise in their petro- leum industries.

There are number of international organizations in the world to facilitate growth and development of the underdeveloped countries, international trade, international transactions etc. Some important inter- national organizations are:

World Bank or International bank for Recon- struction and Development (IBRD, 1945) was established mainly to reconstruct and develop the war damaged European economics. But later it took up the task of developing the less developed and poor nations, It is an inter-governmental organiza- tion corporate in form “World free of Poverty” has been the motto of World Bank and its group (IMF, IDA, MIGA, IFC and ICSID). For this purpose, the World Bank provides mainly two types of loans: Investment Loans for projects, for building Roads, Highways, Water supply system etc., and Adjustment loans which are structural adjustment loans to bring about structural changes in the economy. There are sectoral adjustment loans given to particular sectors to transform them.

International Monetary Fund (IMF, 1945) is an international organization of 184 member countries. It was established to promote interna- tional monetary cooperation, exchange stability, and orderly exchange arrangements; to foster economic growth and high levels of employment; and to pro- vide temporary financial assistance to countries to help ease balance of payments adjustment.

International Development Association (IDA, 1960) is the “Soft loan” window of the World Bank It provides grants with lower interest rates and ser- vice charges to poor and developing member coun- tries, International Finance Corporation (IFC, 1956) was established to assist economic development by encouraging the growth of productive private enterprise in member nations.

Multilateral Investment Guarantee Agency (MIGA) encourages the flow of foreign direct investment to its developing member countries. It facilitates investment primarily by providing invest-

ment guarantees against non-commercial risks like currency transfer.

International Centre for the settlement of Investment Disputes (ICSID): #

It provides facilities for the settlement of invest- ment disputes, by conciliation or arbitration between member countries and nationals of other member countries.

United Nations Conference on Trade and Development (UNCTAD, 1964) promotes the devel- opment-friendly integration of developing countries into the world economic. UNCTAD has progres- sively evolved into an authoritative knowledge-based institution whose work aims to help shape efficient policy debates and thinking on development with a particular focus on ensuring that domestic policies and international action are mutually supportive in bringing about sustainable development. The organ- ization works to fulfill this mandate by carrying out three key functions:

1. it functions as a forum for intergovernmental deliberations, supported by discussions with experts and exchanges of experience, aimed at consensus building.
2. It undertakes research, policy analysis and data collection for the debates of government representatives and experts and
3. it provides technical assistance tailored to the specific requirements of developing coun- tries, with special attention to the needs of the least developed countries and of economies in transition. When appropriate, UNCTAD coop- erates with other organizations and donor coun- tries in the delivery of technical assistance.

General Agreements on Terms of Trade and Tariffs (GATT, 1948-1994) was an international treaty to promote trade and development by reducing tariffs and other restrictions. It was superseded by the establishment of WTO in 1995.

World Trade Organization (WTO) was established on Jan 1, 1995 as a successor to GATT. WTO serves as the world’s watchdog to promote and enforce free and fair economic practices and compliance with international trade agreements. The major function of the WTO is to regulate trade in the liberalized era. The WTO agreements or codes

provide a framework for an integrated approach to tackle the trade-related economic issues. The WTO agreement are based on the Uruguay Round nego- tiations (Dunkel Draft) of GATT. Important WTO agreements are-

1. Trade Related Investment Measures (TRIMs) guarantee national treatment for foreign investors and ban any kind of govern- ment regulation on foreign investment such as: technology transfer requirements, restric- tions on the transfer of profits overseas, con- trols on foreign exchange flows, government reviews of foreign investment performance, nationalization, expropriation, etc. TRIMs ex- plicitly and exclusively deals with investment matters. Its statement of principles states that no country should institute any measure that is inconsistent with the two important princi- ples of the WTO system: national treatment and the prohibition of quantitative restrictions.
2. The General Agreement on Trade in Ser- vices (GATs) establishes a multilateral framework of principles and rules for trade in services with a view to the expansion of such trade under conditions of transparency and progressive liberalization; as a means to promote economic growth of all the countries and the development of developing countries. Through general obligations and principles, the negotiation of specific commitments and the commitment to launch further rounds of negotiations on trade in services, the GATS seeks to achieve predictable and growing ac- cess to markets for services.
3. Most-Favoured Nation (MFN): Under this clause, members are bound to grant to the products of other members, a treatment no less favourable than that accorded to the products of any other country. Thus, no coun- try is to give special trading advantages to another or to discriminate against it, all are on an equal basis and all share the benefits of any moves towards lower trade barriers. Membership in the WTO gives a country the legal right not to be discriminated against in its trade with the over 130 other members of the organization.

4.     Intellectual Property Rights (IPRs): WTO #

has given utmost importance to IPRs. In- tellectual property refers to creations of the mind – inventions, literary and artistic works, and symbols, names, images, and designs used in commerce. Intellectual property is divided into two categories: Industrial prop- erty, which includes inventions (patents), trademarks, industrial designs, and geo- graphic indications of source; and Copyright, which includes literary and artistic works such as novels, poems and plays, films, mu- sical works, artistic works such as drawings, ‘paintings, photographs and sculptures, and architectural designs.’ Rights related to copy- right include those of performing artists in ‘their performances, producers of phono- grams in their recordings, and those of broad- casters in their radio and television programs.

World Intellectual Property Organization (WIPO) is a specialized agency of United Nations. It is dedicated to developing a balanced and acces- sible international Intellectual Property (IP) system, which rewards creativity, stimulates innovation and contributes to economic development while safe- guarding the public interest.

United Nations Industrial Development Organization (UNIDO) is the United Nations Specialized industrial agency mandated to promote industrial development and international industrial cooperation.

The African Development Bank (ADB) is a multilateral development Bank whose share holders include 53 African Countries and 24 Non-African countries. African Development Fund comprises African Development Bank and State Participants. Its main objective is to reduce poverty in regional member countries of Africa by providing conces- sional loans for projects and programs.

Asian Development Bank aims at improving the welfare of people in Asia and the Pacific, par- ticularly the 1.9 billion who live on less than, $ 2 a day. It is a multilateral development financial institution owned by 66 members, 47 from the region (Asia) and 19 from other parts. It provides help to member countries through policy dialogue, loans, technical assistance, grants, guarantees and equity investments.

The Asian Development Fund, (ADF) helps reduce poverty and improve the quality of life for poor people throughout Asia and the Pacific. Since 1973, ADF has been major instrument of concessional financing in support of equitable and sustainable development of the region.

The Caribbean Development Bank (CDB) was established by an agreement which was signed on October 18, 1969, at Kingston, Jamaica, and entered into force on January 26, 1970. The purpose of CDB is contributing to the harmonious economic growth and development of the member countries in the Caribbean and promoting economic cooperation and integration among them.

The European Bank for Reconstruction and Development (EBRD) was established in 1991 when communism was crumbling in central and Eastern Europe and ex-soviet countries needed support to nurture a new private sector in a democratic environ- ment. Today the EBRD uses the tools of investment to help build market economies and democracies in countries from central Europe to central Asia.

The Inter-American Development Bank: A long-standing initiative of the Latin American countries, the Inter-American Development Bank was established in 1959 as a development insti- tution with novel mandates and tools. Its lending and technical cooperation programs for economic and social development projects went far beyond the mere financing of economic projects that was customary at the time.

The North American Development Bank (NADB) is a binational financial institution capi- talized and governed equally by the United States and Mexico for the purpose of financing environ- mental projects certified by the Border Environment Cooperation Commission (BECC). The two institu- tions work together with communities and project sponsors in both countries to develop and finance infrastructure necessary for a clean and healthy environment for border residents.

International Trade Centre (ITC, 1964) has helped the business sectors of developing and tran- sition economies to develop exports. ITC’s goal is to help these countries to achieve sustainable human development through exports, with an emphasis on competitiveness.

Important Factopedia #

Foreign exchange market

The market in which national currencies are traded for one another.

Exchange rate #

The price of one currency in terms of the other is known as the exchange rate. E.g. 1US$=INR68.

The real exchange rate

Meaning	Is the relative price of foreign goods in terms of domestic goods.It meas- ures the international competitiveness of a country in international trade.
If real exchange rate is equal to one	The two countries are said to be in purchasing power parity. This means that goods cost the same in two countries.
If the real exchange rises above one.	This means that goods abroad have become more expensive than goods at home.

Exchange Rate Regime

Fixed exchange rate	When exchange rate is determined by Govt (e.g. China).
Floating/Flexible	When exchange rate is determined by demand and supply in market (e.g. US).
Managed	When demand and supply force in market are independent and Govt. also give direction.(e.g. India).

Purchasing Power Parity (PPP) theory #

According to the theory, as long as there are no barriers to trade like tariffs (taxes on trade) and quotas (quantitative limits on imports), exchange rates should eventually adjust so that the same product costs the same whether measured in rupees in India, or dollars in the US, yen in Japan and so on, except for differences in transportation.

According to the PPP theory, differences in the domestic inflation and foreign inflation are a major cause of adjustment in exchange rates.

If one country has higher inflation than another, its exchange rate should be depreciating.

Open economy v/s Closed economy

Open economy	Closed economy
Which has economic relations with the rest of the world.	Which has no economic relations with the rest of the world.
Most countries of the world are open economy.	Example of closed economy is difficult to find in present day world. (e.g. North Korea).
In an open economy, the demand for domestic goods is equal to the domestic demand for goods (consumption, investment and government spending) plus exports minus imports i.e. In an open economy, exports constitute an additional source of demand for domestic goods and services.	In a closed economy, there are three sources of demand for domestic goods – Consumption, gov- ernment spending, and domestic investment.

India’s Top Export Destinations – Ranks

1. USA

• UAE
• Hong Kong
• China
• UK

India’s Top Import Sources – Ranks

1. China
2. USA
3. Saudi Arabia
4. UAE
5. Switzerland

India’s Top Export Items – Ranks

1. Petroleum Products
2. Pearls, prec. & semi-prec. Stones
3. Gold, other prec. metal jewellery

India’s Top Import Items – Ranks

1. Petroleum: crude
2. Gold
3. Pearl, prec., semi-prec. Stones

Composition of India’s External Debts

1. Multilateral
2. Bilateral
3. IMF
4. Export Credit
5. Commercial Borrowings
6. NRI Deposits
7. Rupee Debt
8. Total Long Term Debt (1 to 7)
9. Short Term Debt
10. Total External Debt (8+9)

Status report on India’s External Debts is prepared by Department of Economic Affair (MOF)

Credit rating agencies

India’s sovereign debt is usually rated by 6 Sovereign Credit Rating Agencies (SCRAs) viz.

• Moody’s Investor Services,
  • Standard and Poor’s (S&P),
  • Dominion Bond Rating Service (DBRS),
  • Fitch Ratings,
  • Japanese Credit Rating Agency (JCRA) and

• Rating and Investment Information (R&I).

Dumping #

Dumping is a kind of predatory pricing, especially in the context of international trade.

It occurs when manufacturers export a product to another country at a price either below the price charged in its home market or below its cost of production.

Anti dumping #

Anti dumping is a measure to rectify the situation arising out of the dumping of goods.

Thus, the purpose of anti dumping duty is to rectify the trade distortive effect of dumping and re-establish fair trade.

Arbitrage #

1. Petroleum Products
2. Pearls, prec. & semi-prec. Stones
3. Gold, other prec. metal jewellery.

India’s Top Import Items – Ranks

Simultaneous buying and selling of securities, currency, or commodities in different markets in order to take advantage of prices difference for the same asset.

World Largest Economy-Gross domestic product 2015 (World Bank report)

Ranking	Economy	GDP (millions of US dollars)
1	United States	18,036,648
2	China	11,007,720
3	Japan	4,123,257
4	Germany	3,363,446
5	United Kingdom	2,858,003
6	France	2,418,836
7	India	2,095,398

Chabahar port development agreement with Iran

Location of Chah- bahar port	Located in the Sistan-Baluchistan Province on Iran’s south-eastern coast. It lies outside the Persian Gulf and is easily accessible from India’s western coast.
Benefit to India	It will provide India an alternative and reliable access route into Afghanistan utilizing India’s earlier investment in Zaranj-Delaram road built in Afghanistan, and a reliable and more direct sea-road access route into Central Asian Region, and Alternative to North South Corridor (Access to Russia and North Baltic countries).
India’s Port	Ports on the Western Coast of India like Kandla (550 NM) and Mumbai /JNPT (786 NM) will get the maximum benefit from this agreement.

International North–South Transport Corridor (INSTC)

About INSTC

INSTC is a multi-modal transportation established in 12 SEP 2000 in St. Petersburg, by Iran, Russia and India for the purpose of promoting transportation cooperation among the Member States.

Detail of corridor	This corridor connects India Ocean and Persian Gulf to the Caspian Sea via IRAN, then is connected to St. Petersburg and North European via Russian Federation.
Founder Members (3)	Iran, Russia and India.
Other members (10)	Azerbaijan, Armenia, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyz Republic (Kyrgyzstan), Tajikistan, Turkey, Ukraine, Belarus, Oman, Syria, Observer Bulgaria.
Observer	Bulgaria.

China Pakistan Economic Corridor (CPEC)

About CPEC	It will link the Gwadar city in South Western Pakistan to China’s North Western region Xinjiang through a vast network of highways and railways.
Benefit to China	CPEC will cut short the trade route for China’s oil imports and also open up new strategic gateway for China to tap into African, West Asian, South Asian and European market.
India’s objection	Because it crosses through the Pakistan occupied part of Kashmir.

The Golden Crescent (also called the silk route of drugs)

Location	The Golden Crescent is a mountainous area of Iran, Afghanistan and Pakistan where opium has been grown for hundreds of years.
Why in news	It is the Route through which drugs are making their way into Punjab.

BBIN (Bangladesh-Bhutan-India-Nepal) Motor Vehicle Agreement

Why BBIN	As SAARC Motor Vehicle Agreement could not be signed due to reservations of Pakistan. So it was considered appropriate that a sub regional Motor Vehicle Agreement among Bangladesh, Bhutan, India and Nepal (BBIN) may be pursued.
Benefit	BBIN countries will be benefited by mutual cross border movement of passenger and goods for overall economic development of the region.
Cost sharing	Each Party will bear its own costs arising from implementation of this agreement.

OBOR (One Belt, One Road initiative)

About OBOR	It refers to the New Silk Road Economic Belt, which will link China with Europe through Central and Western Asia, and the 21st Century Maritime Silk Road, which will connect China with Southeast Asian countries, Africa and Europe.
Started by	China.
Roadmap	Neither the belt nor the road follows any clear line geographically speaking; they serve more as a roadmap for how China wants to further integrate itself into the world economy and strengthen its influence in these regions.

China-Market Economy Status

History	When China joined the WTO on December 11, 2001, it was written into the agreement that member states could treat China as a non-market economy for 15 years.This allowed them to impose heavy anti-dumping duties on the basis that China’s low prices did not reflect market reality.
Present situation	Now after 15 years China are demanding that they should be recognized as a ‘market economy’ but The US, EU and Japan are defending their economies against dumping.
India’s position	India is also “non-committal” on according MES to China. The intention will be to ensure India’s manufacturing sector is not hit by unfairly priced Chinese goods.

India-Myanmar-Thailand Trilateral Highway (IMT)

Purpose	To improve connectivity with South East Asia by road.
Project detail	The Trilateral Highway starts from Moreh (Manipur) in India up to Mae Sot in Thailand through Myanmar.
Extension of Highway	Government of India is exploring the possibility of extending the India- Myanmar-Thailand (IMT) highway to Cambodia, Lao PDR (Laos) and Vietnam.

Kaladan Multi Modal Transit Transport Project

Purpose	It will provide an alternate access route to the North-Eastern region of India and contribute towards the region’s economic development.
Project detail	The Kaladan Multi Modal Transit Transport (through Sea, Road & Inland waterways) Project was jointly identified by the India and Myanmar to create a multi-modal mode of transport for shipment of cargo from the eastern ports of India to Myanmar as well as to the North-Eastern part of India through Myanmar.This project, which will connect Sittwe Port in Myanmar to the India- Myanmar border, is expected to contribute to the economic development of the North-Eastern States of India, by opening up the sea route for the products.It also provides a strategic link to the North-East, thereby reducing pressure on the Siliguri Corridor.Being a key connectivity project, it will promote economic, commercial and strategic links between India and Myanmar.
India’s grant	Since the project is of political and strategic significance, it was decided to execute it through India’s grant assistance to Myanmar.
Administered by	is being administered by the Ministry of External Affairs (MEA).

TAPI Gas Pipeline Project

Countries involved	Turkmenistan-Afghanistan-Pakistan-India.
Entry in India	Pipeline will enter India at Fazilka, Punjab.
Benefit	1814 km long TAPI pipeline project is envisaged to supply 38 MMSCMD of natural gas to India.

India’s decision to join Ashgabat Agreement

Objective    of                  the agreement	To facilitate the transport of goods between Central Asia and the Persian Gulf. It seeks to create an international transport and transit corridor.
Members	Oman, Iran, Turkmenistan and Uzbekistan as founding members. Kazakhstan has also joined this arrangement subsequently Depository State (Turkmenistan). Pakistan also decided to join the Ashgabat Agreement.
Benefit to India	Accession to the Agreement would enable India to utilise this existing transport and transit corridor to facilitate trade and commercial interaction with the Eurasian region. Further, this would synchronise with our efforts to implement the International North South Transport Corridor (INSTC) for enhanced connectivity.
India’s Status	India would become party to the Agreement upon consent of the founding members.

The Bay of Bengal Initiative for Multi-Sectoral Technical and Economic Cooperation (BIMSTEC)

About BIMSTEC

BIMSTEC is a regional organization comprising 7 Member States lying in the littoral and adjacent areas of the Bay of Bengal constituting a contiguous regional unity. BIMSTEC is a sector-driven cooperative organization.

Establishment	In June 1997 through the Bangkok Declaration.
Member States (7)	5 from South Asia-Bangladesh, Bhutan, India, Nepal & Sri Lanka 2 from Southeast Asia-Myanmar and Thailand 5 from South Asia-Bangladesh, Bhutan, India, Nepal & Sri Lanka 2 from Southeast Asia-Myanmar and Thailand.
Founding                  member (BISTEC) ‘BIMST-EC’	Initially, it was ‘BIST-EC’ (Bangladesh, India, Sri Lanka and Thailand Economic Cooperation). Following the inclusion of Myanmar the Group was renamed ‘BIMS- TEC’ (Bangladesh, India, Myanmar, Sri Lanka and Thailand Economic Cooperation).
Present status	With the admission of Nepal and Bhutan in 2004, the name of the grouping was changed to ‘Bay of Bengal Initiative for Multi-Sectoral Technical and Economic Cooperation’ (BIMSTEC).
Advantages	It constitutes a bridge between South and South East Asia.It has also established a platform for intra-regional cooperation between SAARC and ASEAN members.
BIMSTEC region	The BIMSTEC region is home to around 1.5 billion people which constitute around 22% of the global population with a combined gross domestic product (GDP) of 2.7 trillion economy. In the last five years, BIMSTEC Member States have been able to sustain an average 6.5% economic growth trajectory despite global financial meltdown.

The Logistics Exchange Memorandum of Agreement (LEMOA)

Signed between	Ministry of defence of India and the Department of defence of US.
Purpose	LEMOA provides a framework for reciprocal provision of logistic support, sup- plies and services for activities such as joint exercises, training or humanitarian assistance and disaster relief.
Exclusion	It does not provide for the establishment of any bases or basing arrangements.

Exchange rate of Foreign Currency relating to import and export of goods

Central board of Excise & Custom (CBEC) determines the exchange rate of conversion of Foreign Currency into Indian currency or vice versa relating to import and export of goods.Exchange rate w.e.f. 03-02-2017

Sl.No.	Foreign Currency	Rate of exchange of one unit of foreign currency equiva- lent to Indian rupees.
		(For Imported Goods)	(For Export Goods)
1.	Australian Dollar	52.50	50.70
2.	Bahrain Dinar	185.50	173.10
3.	Canadian Dollar	52.70	51.10
4.	Danish Kroner	10.00	9.60
5.	EURO	74.20	71.70
6.	Hong Kong Dollar	8.80	8.60
7.	Kuwait Dinar	229.05	214.35
8.	New Zealand Dollar	50.25	48.50
9.	Norwegian Kroner	8.35	8.05
10.	Pound Sterling	87.05	84.20
11.	Singapore Dollar	48.60	47.15
12.	South African Rand	5.20	4.85
13.	Saudi Arabian Riyal	18.60	17.45

14.	Swedish Kroner	7.85	7.60
15.	Swedish Kroner	69.25	67.05
16.	UAE Dirham UAE Dirham	19.00	17.8
17.	US Dollar	68.40	66.70
18.	Chinese Yuan	10.00	9.65
19.	Qatari Riyal	19.15	18.10
20.	Japanese Yen	0.60	0.58
21.	Kenya Shilling	0.67	0.62

Bilateral Investment Treaty (BIT) to boost investment

Purpose of treaty	To promote and protect investments from either country.The Treaty encourages each country to create favourable conditions for investors of the other country.
Benefit	BITs help project India as a preferred foreign direct investment (FDI) destination.
India’s BIT with other countries.	The first BIT was signed by India on March 14, 1994. Since then, the Government of India has signed BITs with 83 countries.

Foreign Trade Policy 2015-2020

Announced on	1st April, 2015Announced on 1st April, 2015
Focus	Supporting both manufacturing and services exports.
Introduction of two new schemes	Merchandise Exports from India Scheme (MEIS) and Services Exports from India Scheme (SEIS).
MEIS	MEIS aims to incentivize export of merchandise which is produced/ manufactured in India.
SEIS	The Scheme provided rewards to service providers of notified services who are providing service from India.

Classification of Economies by World Bank

Four categories	Low-income economies (Afghanistan, Nepal).Lower middle-income economies (India, Pakistan, Sri Lanka, Bangladesh, Bhutan, Myanmar).Upper middle-income economies (China, Maldives)High-income economies.
India’ position	India is now a ‘lower-middle-income’ economy for World Bank World Bank has dropped the use of developing nation tag for India.

BRICS

History	The acronym BRIC was first used in 2001 by Goldman Sachs.
Nature	An association of 5 major emerging economies.
Founding                    Member (4)	Brazil, Russia, India, China. Earlier known as BRIC.South Africa joined later in 2010 then called as BRICS.
First BRIC summit	Held in Yekaterinburg, Russia, on 16 June 2009.
6th BRICS summit	At Fortaleza, Brazil.Announcement of The New Development Bank and Contingent Reserve Arrangement.
7th BRICS summit	Held in July 2015 in Ufa, Russia
8th BRICS Summit	Held in October 2016 in Goa, India.Theme was “Building Responsive, Inclusive and Collective Solutions.”

9th BRICS Summit

China will host the 9th BRICS Summit in 2017.

The New Development Bank

Genesis	The idea for creation of the New Development Bank was first mooted in the Fourth BRICS Summit at New Delhi on March 29, 2012.On July 15, 2014 at the sixth summit in Fortaleza, Brazil the BRICS countries signed the Articles for the New Development Bank with an Authorized Capital of USD 100 billion.
Share of each member	The initial subscribed capital of the NDB is USD 50 billion divided equally among the BRICS countries.
Purpose	mobilizing resources for infrastructure and sustainable development projects in BRICS and other emerging economies and developing countries, complementing the existing efforts of multilateral and regional financial institutions for global growth and development.
HQ	Shanghai, China.
President	Mr. K.V. Kamath (India) was elected the first President of the Bank.

BRICS Contingent Reserve Agreement (CRA)

Genesis	Announced in the sixth BRICs summit in Fortaleza, Brazil.
Purpose	To provide short-term liquidity support to the members through currency swaps to help mitigating Balance of Payment crisis situation.
Share of each member	The Arrangement totals $100 billion:China’s share at $41 billion,South Afri- ca’s share at $5 billion, Brazil, India’s and Russia’s shares at $18 billion each.

South Asian Association for Regional Cooperation (SAARC)

Established	On 8th December 1985 Dhaka, Bangladesh (First Summit).
Founding Members	Bangladesh, Bhutan, India, Maldives, Nepal, Pakistan and Sri Lanka. Afganistan joined later at 14th SAARC summit in 2007.
About SAARC	It is a organization of 8 countries that are primarily located in South Asia. Afghanistan is a Central Asian country.
Secretariat/HQ	Kathmandu, Nepal.
Postponement of 19th summit	Pakistan in Islamabad was scheduled to host the 19th annual SAARC summit. After the terrorist attacks on the Indian army base in Uri, Kashmir, India decided that It would boycott the summit. Bangladesh, Sri Lanka, Afghanistan, Maldives and Bhutan followed suit, also boycotting the summit. Nepal is only nation that have not pulled out of SAARC Summit 2016.
Observer states	AustraliaChinaEuropean UnionIranJapanRepublic of KoreaMauritiusMyanmarUSA

Secretary General	The Secretariat is headed by the Secretary General, who is appointed by the Council of Ministers from Member States in alphabatical order for a three year term.The Secretary General is assisted by eight Directors on deputation from the Member States.
South Asian Free	The SAFTA Agreement was signed on 6 January 2004 during Twelfth SAARC
Trade Area (SAFTA)	Summit held in Islamabad, Pakistan and came into force from 1st January 2006 and the Trade Liberalization Programme commenced from 1st July 2006.Following the Agreement coming into force the SAFTA Ministerial Council (SMC) has been established comprising the Commerce Ministers of the Member States.To assist the SMC, a SAFTA Committee of Experts (SCOE) has been formed. SCOE is expected to submit its report to SMC every six months.The SAFTA Agreement states that the “the SMC shall meet at least once every year or more often as and when considered necessary by the Contracting States.Each Contracting State shall chair the SMC for a period of one year on rotational basis in alphabetical order.”
Currency Swap Arrangement	India has Currency Swap Arrangement for SAARC Member Countries. Under the facility, RBI offers swaps of varying sizes to each SAARC Member countries depending on their two months import requirement and not exceeding US$ 2 billion in total, in USD, Euro or INR to meet any balance of payments and liquidity mismatches.

The South Asia Subregional Economic Cooperation (SASEC) Program

Established	In 2001.
About SASEC	It brings together Bangladesh, Bhutan, India, the Maldives, Nepal, and Sri Lanka in a project-based partnership to promote regional prosperity by improving cross-border connectivity, boosting trade among member countries, and strengthening regional economic cooperation.Pakistan and Afganistan not a part of this group.
Role of ADB	The Asian Development Bank (ADB) serves as Secretariat to the SASEC Program. ADB supports SASEC countries in strengthening regional ties for growth and promot- ing cooperation; and provides financial and technical support to improve connectivity, strengthen institutions and trade links, and expand human capital.

ASEAN-Association of Southeast Asian Nations

Established	On 8 August 1967 in Bangkok (Thailand).
HQ	Jakarta (Indonesia).
Aims and Purposes	To accelerate the economic growth, social progress, and cultural development,To promote regional peace and stability etc.
Members	10
Founding members (5)	Indonesia, Malaysia, Philippines, Singapore and Thailand.
Other members as per	Brunei Darussalam, Viet Nam, Lao PDR (Laos), Myanmar and
joining date sequence.	Cambodia.
Observer state	Papua New Guinea.
India’s membership	India is in South Asia. It is not a member of ASEAN.
Agreement	India has ASEAN–India Free Trade Area (AIFTA) agreement.

Financial assistance	India has provided Financial assistance to ASEAN countries in following forms:ASEAN-India Cooperation Fund,ASEAN-India Science and Technology Development Fund,ASEAN-India Green Fund.
Motto of ASEAN	“One Vision, One Identity, One Community”.

Regional Comprehensive Economic Partnership (RCEP)

Mega-regional economic agreement	Largely driven by ASEAN.
Negotiated between	10 ASEAN (Association of South-East Asian Nations) govern- ments and their six FTA (Free Trade Area) partners: Australia, China, India, Japan, New Zealand and South Korea.

Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC)

About APEC	APEC is a regional economic forum established in 1989 to leverage the growing interdependence of the Asia-Pacific.
HQ	Singapore.
Member countries (21)	Australia; Brunei Darussalam; Canada; Chile; China; Hong Kong-China; Indo- nesia; Japan; Republic of Korea; Malaysia; Mexico; New Zealand; Papua New Guinea; Peru; Philippines; Russia; Singapore; Chinese Taipei; Thailand; USA; Viet Nam.
Observers	Association of Southeast Asian Nations Secretariat, Pacific Economic Coopera- tion Council and Pacific Islands Forum Secretariat.
India’s membership	India is not a member.

Asia Pacific Trade Agreement (APTA)

About  APTA	APTA (formerly known as the Bangkok Agreement) is a oldest preferential trade agreement among developing countries in Asia-Pacific.It is based on Margin of Preference.It was signed in 1975.It is an initiative of the United Nations Economic and Social Commission for Asia and the Pacific (UNESCAP).
Members (6)	Bangladesh, China, India, Lao PDR, Republic of Korea (South Korea), and Sri Lanka. Mongolia is soon to become the 7th member of APTA.
Secretariat	ESCAP functions as the Secretariat to the Agreement.
Features of APTA	Open to all developing member countries, APTA is a truly region-wide trade agree- ment spanning East and South Asia, with potential to expand to other sub-regions, including Central Asia and the Pacific.APTA is the first plurilateral agreement among the developing countries in the region to adopt common operational procedures for certification and verification of the origin of goods and it has the longest effective implementation period amongst the trade agreements in the entire Asia- Pacific. Notably, APTA is the only operational trade agreement linking China and India, two of the fastest growing markets in the world, and other major markets such as the Republic of Korea.

Asian Development bank

Genesis	The Asian Development Bank was conceived in the early 1960s as a financial institution that would be Asian in character and foster economic growth and cooperation in one of the poorest regions in the world.
Established	In 1966.

Function	ADB assists its members, and partners, by providing loans, technical assistance, grants, and equity investments to promote social and economic development.
HQ	Manila, Philippines.
India’s Membership	India is a founder member.
Shareholding	Japan has largest shareholding and voting power.

Asian Infrastructure Investment Bank (AIIB)

Purpose.	AIIB will complement and cooperate with the existing multilateral development banks to jointly address the daunting infrastructure needs in Asia.
HQ	Beijing, China.
India’s Membership	India is a founder member.
Shareholding	China has largest shareholding and voting power.

The Colombo Plan for Cooperative Economic and

Social      Development               in Asiaand the Pacific
History	Conceived at the Commonwealth Conference on Foreign Affairs held in Colombo, Ceylon (now Sri Lanka) in January 1950 and was launched on 1 July 1951 as a cooperative venture for the economic and social advance- ment of the peoples of South and Southeast Asia.It was a group of seven Commonwealth nations – Australia, Britain, Canada, Ceylon, India, New Zealand and Pakistan.
Came into present form	1977.
Present member	27, including non-Commonwealth countries Afghanistan, Australia, Bangla- desh, Bhutan, Brunei Darussalam, Fiji, India, Indonesia, Iran, Japan, South Korea, Lao PDR, Malaysia, Maldives, Mongolia, Myanmar, Nepal, New Zealand, Pakistan, Papua New Guinea, Philippines, Saudi Arabia, Singa- pore, Sri Lanka, Thailand, America, Vietnam.

UN Bretton Woods conference 1944

Held in	Bretton Woods, New Hampshire, United States.
Purpose	to regulate the international monetary and financial order after the conclusion of World War II.
Result of conference	To create the International Monetary Fund (IMF) whose purpose was to promote stability of exchange rates and financial flows and to create IBRD which is today part of World Bank group whose purpose was to speed reconstruction after the Second World War and to foster economic development, especially through lending to build infrastructure.

International Monetary Fund

Genesis

The IMF, also known as the Fund, was conceived at a UN conference in Bretton Woods, New Hampshire, United States, in July 1944.The 44 countries at that conference sought to build a framework for economic cooperation to avoid a repetition of the competitive devaluations that had contributed to the Great Depression of the 1930s.

About IMF	The International Monetary Fund (IMF) Created in 1945 is an organization of 189 countries, working to foster global monetary cooperation, secure financial stability, facilitate international trade, promote high employment and sustainable economic growth, and reduce poverty around the world.
IMF responsibilities	The IMF’s primary purpose is to ensure the stability of the international monetary system—the system of exchange rates and international payments that enables countries (and their citizens) to transact with each other.It does so in three ways:Keeping track of the global economy and the economies of member countries; (Surveillance).Lending to member countries with balance of payments difficulties; and (Lending).Giving practical help/training to members countries. (Capacity Development).
HQ	Washington DC (US).
Key Publications	World Economic outlook report, Global financial stability report, Fiscal monitor, Regional Economic Reports.
India’s membership	India is a founder member of the IMF.India is represented at the IMF by an Executive Director. He also represents Bangladesh, Sri Lanka and Bhutan.
Managing Director	On July 5, 2011, Christine Lagarde (France) became the eleventh Managing Director of the IMF, and the first woman to hold that position.On February 19, 2016, the IMF Executive Board selected her to serve as IMF Managing Director for a second five-year term starting on July 5, 2016.
Board of Governors	The Board of Governors is the highest decision-making body of the IMF.
Meeting of IMF and World Bank	The Boards of Governors of the IMF and the World Bank Group normally meet once a year, during the IMF-World Bank Spring and Annual Meetings, to discuss the work of their respective institutions.
Ministerial	The IMF Board of Governors is advised by two ministerial committees, the
Committees	International Monetary and Financial Committee (IMFC) and the Devel- opment Committee.
IMFC	The IMFC has 24 members, drawn from the pool of 187 governors.The Committee discusses matters of common concern affecting the global econ- omy and also advises the IMF on the direction its work.There is no formal voting at the IMFC, which operates by consensus.World Bank, participate as observers in the IMFC’s meetings.

World Bank Group

Established	In 1944 to help Europe recover from the devastation of World War II.
HQ	Washington DC (US).
About World Bank	The World Bank is a vital source of financial and technical assistance to developing countries around the world.
Five Institutions, One Group	World bank group consist of five organizations.International Bank for Reconstruc- tion and Development (IBRD) (India Founder Member). International Development Association (IDA) (India Founder Member). International Finance Corporation (IFC) (India Founder Member). Multilateral Investment Guarantee Agency (MIGA) (India became Member in 1994). International Centre for Settlement of Investment Disputes (ICSID). (India is not a member of ICSID).Together, IBRD and IDA make up the World Bank.

IBRD	It was created in 1944 to help Europe rebuild after World War II.Lends to gov- ernments of middle-income and creditworthy low-income countries.IBRD is the original World Bank institution.It works closely with the rest of the World Bank Group to help developing countries reduce poverty, promote economic growth, and build prosperity.
IDA	IDA provides interest-free loans — called credits — and grants to governments of the poorest countries.
IFC	IFC is the largest global development institution focused exclusively on the pri- vate sector in developing countries.Helps developing countries achieve sustainable growth by financing investment, mobilizing capital in international financial mar- kets, and providing advisory services to businesses and governments.
MIGA	Mission is to promote foreign direct investment (FDI) into developing countries to support economic growth, reduce poverty, and improve people’s lives.MIGA fulfills this mandate by offering political risk insurance (guarantees) to investors and lenders.
ICSID	It provides international facilities for conciliation and arbitration of investment disputes.
Two ambitious goals	The World Bank Group has set two goals for the world to achieve by 2030:End extreme poverty by decreasing the percentage of people living on less than $1.90 a day to no more than 3% Promote shared prosperity by fostering the income growth of the bottom 40% for every country.
President	Jim Yong Kim (South Korea-America).
Key Publications	World Development Report, World development indicators, Doing Business, Global Economic Prospects, International Debt Statistics, Poverty and shared prosperity, Global Financial Development Report, South Asia Economic Focus Fall 2016:Investment Reality Check.

World Trade Organization

Created by	Uruguay Round negotiations (1986-94).
Established	1 January 1995 replacing General Agreement on Tariffs and Trade (GATT, 1948).
About WTO	The WTO is a rules-based, member-driven organization — all decisions are made by the member governments, and the rules are the outcome of negotiations among members.WTO deals with the global rules of trade between nations.Its main function is to ensure that trade flows as smoothly, predictably and freely as possible.
Function	Administering WTO trade agreements.” Forum for trade negotiations.” Handling trade disputes.” Monitoring national trade policies.” Technical assistance and training for developing countries.” Cooperation with other international organ- izations.
WTO agreements	The WTO agreements cover goods, services and intellectual property. These agreements are negotiated and signed by the bulk of the world’s trading nations and ratified in their parliaments. These documents provide the legal ground rules for international commerce.The goal is to help producers of goods and services, exporters, and importers conduct their business.The WTO is currently the host to new negotiations, under the ‘Doha Development Agenda’ launched in 2001.

Fundamental principles of WTO Agreements	The WTO agreements are lengthy and complex because they are legal texts covering a wide range of activities.But a number of simple, fundamental princi- ples run throughout all of these documents. These principles are the foundation of the multilateral trading system.Non-discrimination- A country should not discriminate between its trading partners and it should not discriminate between its own and foreign products, services or nationals. More open-Lowering trade barriers. Predictable and transparent- Foreign companies, investors and govern- ments should be confident that trade barriers should not be raised arbitrarily. More competitive-Discouraging ‘unfair’ practices, such as export subsidies and dumping products at below cost to gain market share; More beneficial for less developed countries- Giving them more time to adjust, greater flexibility and special privileges; Over 75% of WTO members are developing countries. Protect the environment- The WTO’s agreements permit members to take measures to protect not only the environment but also public health, animal health and plant health. However, these measures must be applied in the same way to both national and foreign businesses. In other words, members must not use envi- ronmental protection measures as a means of disguising protectionist policies.
HQ	Geneva, Switzerland.
Director-General	Roberto Azevêdo (Brazil).
India’s membership	India is a founder members of WTO.
Afghanistan	Recently, Afghanistan became 164th WTO member.
Key Publications	World trade report, World trade statistical review.
Most-favoured nation (MFN):treating other people equally	Under the WTO agreements, countries cannot normally discriminate between their trading partners.Grant someone a special favour (such as lower customs duty), you have to do the same for all other WTO members.MFN doesn’t mean preferential treatment. MFN clauses promote nondiscrimination among countries.However, a country may enter into a free trade agreement or customs union granting more favourable treatment to the participating states than to the other WTO members if it observes certain conditions stipulated in the relevant provisions of the WTO agreements, to ensure the complementarity of the FTA with the WTO system.
India MFN Status	India has already granted MFN status to Pakistan in 1996. Pakistan has yet to grant the most favoured nation (MFN) status to India.
Subsidies	In WTO terminology, subsidies in general are identified by “boxes” which are given the colours of traffic lights: green (permitted), amber (slow down — i.e. be reduced), red (forbidden).
World Trade	The WTO has launched a new World Trade Outlook Indicator (WTOI)
Outlook Indicator	designed to provide “real time” information on trends in global trade.
Trade Facilitation	WTO members concluded negotiations at the 2013 Bali Ministerial
Agreement (TFA)	Conference on the landmark Trade Facilitation Agreement (TFA), which entered into force on 22 February 2017 following its ratification by two-thirds of the WTO membership.
TRIPS Agreement	Trade-Related Aspect of Intellectual Property Rights (TRIPS) is a most compre- hensive multilateral agreement on intellectual property which came into effect on 1st January 1995.

European Union

About EU	The European Union is a unique economic and political union between 28 European countries. The EU was created in the aftermath of the Second World War.
History	In 1957, Belgium, France, Italy, Luxembourg, the Netherlands and West Germany signed the Treaty of Rome, which created the European Economic Community (EEC).The European Union was formally established when the Maastricht Treaty came into force on 1 November 1993.
Countries	Austria, Belgium, Bulgaria, Croatia, Republic of Cyprus, Czech Republic, Denmark, Estonia, Finland, France, Germany, Greece, Hungary, Ireland, Italy, Latvia, Lithuania, Luxembourg, Malta, Netherlands, Poland, Portugal, Romania, Slovakia, Slovenia, Spain, Sweden and United Kingdom.
Capital	Brussels (Belgium).
Currency	Euro.
Working of EU	The EU is based on the rule of law: everything it does is founded on treaties, voluntarily and democratically agreed by its member countries.
	Parliament The EU is also governed by the principle of representative democ- racy, with citizens directly represented at Union level in the European Parlia- ment and Member States represented in the European Council and the Council of the EU.
Nobel Peace Prize	In 2012, the EU was awarded the Nobel Peace Prize for advancing the causes of peace, reconciliation, democracy and human rights in Europe.
Brexit (Britain-exit)	The United Kingdom’s withdrawal from the European Union is widely known as Brexit.
Reason of Greece default of IMF loan.	Excessive borrowing from IMF after the global financial crisis in 2008.
Troika	Troika means a group of three international organisations that were lending money to Greece bailout.European Commission.European Central Bank.Inter- national Monetary Fund.
13th EU-India Summit	Held on 30 March 2016 in Brussels (Belgium).
Outcome of summit	EU-India Agenda for Action-2020 as a common roadmap to jointly guide and strengthen the India-EU Strategic Partnership in the next five years.

India–Africa Forum Summit

Held in	Every three years rotational basis
First summit, 2008	In New Delhi.
Second summit, 2011	In Addis Ababa, Ethiopia.
Third summit, 2015	In New Delhi (54 African countries participated).
Reason of delay	Ebola outbreak in few western African countries.

The Shanghai Cooperation Organization

About SCO

SCO is a permanent intergovernmental international organisation, created on 15 June 2001 in Shanghai (China) by the Kazakhstan, China, Kyrgyz Republic, Russia, Tajikistan, and the Uzbekistan.

History	Earlier it was known as Shanghai Five mechanism. All the above countries except Uzbekistan were members.
Decision-making body	The Heads of State Council (HSC) is the supreme decision-making body in the SCO. It meets once a year and adopts decisions and guidelines on all important matters of the organization.
Secretariat or HQ	Beijing (China).
Observer states	SCO has six observer states:India, Pakistan, Afghanistan, Belarus, Iran, Mongolia.
dialogue partners	SCO has six dialogue partners:Azerbaijan, Armenia, Cambodia, Nepal, Turkey, Sri Lanka.
Presidency of the SCO	Every year, presidency of the SCO rotates. The chairing nation completes its year of presidency with a summit.
India’s membership	At the 15th SCO summit in July 2015 held in Ufa (Russia), it was decided to admit India and Pakistan as member states in SCO.India signed a memorandum of obligations at the 16th SCO summit held in Tashkent (Uzbekistan) in June 2016.India is expected to join the SCO at the 17th SCO summit to be held in Astana (Kazakhstan) in June 2017.

United Nations (UN)

Founded	In 1945.
Members	193 countries.
Function	The mission and work of the United Nations are guided by the purposes and principles contained in its founding Charter.Due to the powers vested in its Charter and its unique international character, the United Nations can take action on the issuesconfronting humanity in the 21st century, such as peace and security, climate change, sustainable development, human rights,disarmament, terrorism, humanitarian and health emergencies, gender equality, governance, food production, and more.
Main organs of the UN	General Assembly,Security Council,Economic and Social Council, Trusteeship Council, (suspended operation on 1 November 1994). International Court of Justice, and UN Secretariat. All were established in 1945 when the UN was founded.
General Assembly	The General Assembly is the main deliberative, policymaking and representa- tive organ of the UN.All 193 Member States of the UN are represented in the General Assembly, making it the only UN body with universal representation. Each year, in September, the full UN membership meets in the General Assem- bly Hall in New York for the annual General Assembly session, and general debate, which many heads of state attend and address. Decisions on important questions, such as those on peace and security, admission of new members and budgetary matters, require a two-thirds majority of the General Assembly. Decisions on other questions are by simple majority. The General Assembly, each year, elects a GA President to serve a one-year term of office.
Security Council	The Security Council has primary responsibility, under the UN Charter, for the maintenance of international peace and security. It has 15 Members (5 perma- nent and 10 non-permanent members). Each Member has one vote. Under the Charter, all Member States are obligated to comply with Council decisions.The Security Council has a Presidency, which rotates, and changes, every month.

Permanent Members (P5)	US, UK, France, China and Russia.
Veto Power of (P5)	As per UN charter, every permanent member of UN security council can exercise VETO power and disapprove any decision.
Selection of non-perma- nent members	Each year the General Assembly elects five non-permanent members (out of 10 in total) for a two-year term.In the election of non-permanent members, due regard shall be paid to the contribution of Members to the maintenance of international peace and security and to the other purposes of the Organization, and also to equitable geographical distribution.A retiring member of the Secu- rity Council shall not be eligible for immediate re-election General Assembly has decided that “the ten non-permanent members of the Security Council shall be elected according to the following pattern:(a) Five from African and Asian States;(b) One from Eastern European States;(c) Two from Latin American States;(d) Two from Western European and other States.”
Economic    and     Social Council	It is the United Nations’ central platform for reflection, debate, and innovative thinking on sustainable development.It is the principal body for coordination, policy review, policy dialogue and recommendations on economic, social and environmental issues, as well as implementation of internationally agreed development goals.
International                       Court                     of Justice	The International Court of Justice is the principal judicial organ of the United Nations. Its seat is at the Peace Palace in the Hague (Netherlands).It is the only one of the six principal organs of the United Nations not located in New York (United States of America).The Court’s role is to settle, in accordance with international law, legal disputes submitted to it by States and to give advisory opinions on legal questions referred to it by authorized United Nations organs and specialized agencies.
Secretariat	The Secretariat comprises the Secretary-General and tens of thousands of international UN staff members who carry out the day-to- day work of the UN.
How to become cmember of UN	Memberships is open to all peace-loving States that accept the obligations ontained in the United Nations Charter.States are admitted to membership in the United Nations by decision of the General Assembly upon the recommendation of the Security Council.
Secretary-General	The Secretary-General is chief administrative officer of the Organization, appointed by the General Assembly on the recommendation of the Security Council for a five-year, and may serve up to two terms.Present Secretary-Gen- eral is Ban Ki –moon (South Korea).
Official languages of the UN	There are six official languages of the UN.These are Arabic, Chinese, English, French, Russian and Spanish.
UN Specialized Agencies	UN specializes agencies are autonomous organizations working with the UN. All were brought into relationship with the UN through negotiated agreements. They are: World Bank. IMF. World Health organization (WHO). UNESCO. International Labour organization (ILO). World Intellectual property organiza- tion (WIPO). Food and Agriculture organization (FAO). International Fund for Agricultural Development (IFAD).
HQ	New York, USA.
India’s membership	India is a founding member of the United Nations.

United Nations Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs)

When adopted	On 70th anniversary of UN in 2015.
To be achieved	By 2030.
Replaced MDGs	The new 17 goals replaced the 8 Millennium Development Goals adopted in 2000 which expired at the end of 2015.
Goals & Target	There are 17 Sustainable Development Goals and 169 targets.
Effective from	The new Goals and targets will come into effect on 1 January 2016.
17 SDG	Goal 1. End poverty in all its forms everywhere.Goal 2. End hunger, achieve food security and improved nutrition and promote sustainable agriculture.Goal 3. Ensure healthy lives and promote well-being for all at all ages.Goal 4. Ensure inclusive and equitable quality education and promote lifelong learning opportu- nities for all.Goal 5. Achieve gender equality and empower all women and girls. Goal 6. Ensure availability and sustainable management of water and sanitation for all.Goal 7. Ensure access to affordable, reliable, sustainable and modern energy for all.Goal 8. Promote sustained, inclusive and sustainable economic growth, full and productive employment and decent work for all.Goal 9. Build resilient infrastructure, promote inclusive and sustainable industrialization and foster innovation.Goal 10. Reduce inequality within and among countries.Goal 11. Make cities and human settlements inclusive, safe, resilient and sustainable. Goal 12. Ensure sustainable consumption and production patterns.Goal 13. Take urgent action to combat climate change and its impacts.Goal 14. Con- serve and sustainably use the oceans, seas and marine resources for sustainable development.Goal 15. Protect, restore and promote sustainable use of terrestrial cosystems, sustainably manage forests, combat desertification, and halt and reverse land degradation and halt biodiversity loss.Goal 16. Promote peaceful and inclusive societies for sustainable development, provide access to justice for all and build effective, accountable and inclusive institutions at all levels.Goal 17. Strengthen the means of implementation and revitalize the global partnership for sustainable development.
Responsible agency at UN for Implementation of the SDGs	United Nations Development Programme (UNDP)
In India	Development Monitoring and Evaluation Office (DMEO), an attached office under NITI Aayog

Human Development index under Human Development Report

Issued by

United Nations Development Programme (UNDP).

Created by

Indian economist Amartya Sen and Pakistani economist Mahbub ul Haq in 1990. A composite index measuring average achievement in three basic dimensions of human development EducationMean years of schooling: Average number of years of education received by people ages 25 and older.Expected years of schooling: Number of years of schooling that a child of school entrance age can expect.Gross national income per capita in purchasing power parity terms.Life expectancy at birth.

Classification of coun- tries	Countries have been divided in 4 categories- If HDI index is: 0.800 or greater- Very high human development 0.700 to 0.799- High human development. 0.550 to 0.699 – Medium human development. Less than 0.550- Low human development.
Theme of Human Devel- opment report 2015	Work for Human Development.
Ranking of India and its neighbour	HIGH HUMAN DEVELOPMENT Sri Lanka-73
	China-90
	Maldives-104
	MEDIUM HUMAN DEVELOPMENT
	India-130
	Bhutan-132
	Bangladesh-142
	LOW HUMAN DEVELOPMENT
	Nepal-145
	Pakistan-147
	Myanmar-148

Publications/Reports of World Renowned Institutions

International                           Monetary Fund (IMF)	World Economic Outlook, Global Financial Stability Report, Fiscal Monitor, Regional Economic Reports.
World Bank	World Development Report, World development indicators, Doing Business, Global Economic Prospects, International Debt Statistics, Poverty and shared prosperity, Global Financial Development Report.
World Trade Organization (WTO)	World trade report, World trade statistical review.
United Nations (UN)	Sustainable Development Goals report, World Economic Situation and Pros- pects, World Youth Report, World Statistics Pocketbook.
United Nations Children’s Fund (UNICEF)	State of the World’s children.
United Nations Conference on Trade and Development (UNCTAD)	World Investment Report, Trade and Development report.
United Nations Develop- ment Programme (UNDP)	Human Development Report.
United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime (UNODC)	World Drug Report, World wildlife crime report.
United Nations Population Fund	State of the World’s Population.

United Nations Office for Disaster Risk Reduction (UNISDR)	Sendai Framework for Disaster Risk Reduction 2015-2030.
Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO)	The State of Food and Agriculture, The State of World Fisheries and Aqua- culture.
World Economic Forum	Global Competitiveness Report, Global Competitiveness Index, Global Risks Report, Global Gender Gap Report, Human Capital Report, Global Informa- tion Technology Report, The Inclusive Growth and Development Report.
International labour organ- isation	World Employment Social Outlook, Global Wage Report, World Social Protection Report, Global Employment Trends for Youth, World Report on Child Labour.
Asian Development	Bank Asian Development Outlook, Asian Development Review, Asia Bond Monitor.
European Central Bank	Economic Bulletin, Financial Stability Review, Convergence Report, Mac- roeconomic projections.

G-4

Countries	India, Brazil, Japan, Germany.
Purpose	Formed for securing permanent seat in United Nations Security Council.
Benefit	They support each other bid for permanent membership.

The Mekong-Ganga Cooperation (MGC)

Launched in	2000 at Vientiane, Lao PDR (Laos).
About MGC	Both the Ganga and the Mekong are civilizational rivers, and the MGC initiative aims to facilitate closer contacts among the people inhabiting these two major river basins.
Purpose	for cooperation in tourism, culture, education, as well as transport and communications.
Countries (6)	India and five ASEAN countries: Cambodia, Lao PDR (Laos), Myanmar, Thailand and Vietnam.

International Organization for Standardization (ISO)

About ISO	ISO is an independent, non-governmental international organization with a mem- bership of 163 national standards bodies.
HQ	Geneva, Switzerland
Popular standards	ISO 9000 Quality management.ISO 14000 Environmental management.ISO 26000 Social responsibility.ISO 22000 Food safety management.ISO 27001 Information security management.ISO 45001 Occupational health and safety.
India’s membership	India is member.

Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD)

History	Created in 1960 by 18 European countries plus the United States and Canada for economic development.
Mission	The mission of the OECD is to promote policies that will improve the economic and social well-being of people around the world.
HQ	Paris, France.

Member countries

35 (India is not a member).

Trans-Pacific Partnership (TPP) Agreement

Purpose	It would create a free-trade zone among 12 nations around the Pacific, making it the world’s largest.
Member countries	United States, Australia, Brunei, Canada, Chile, Japan, Malaysia, Mexico, New Zealand, Peru, Singapore, and Vietnam.On 23 January 2017, US President Donald Trump signed an executive order to withdraw the United States from the agreement.
GDP of member countries	These 12 countries account for 40% of the world’s GDP.

The Comprehensive Nuclear-Test-Ban Treaty (CTBT)

About treaty	It bans all nuclear explosions – everywhere, by everyone.It curbs the develop- ment of new nuclear weapons and the improvement of existing nuclear weapon designs.
Negotiated at	The Treaty was negotiated at the Conference on Disarmament in Geneva and adopted by the United Nations General Assembly.It was opened for signature on 24 September 1996 Since then, the Treaty has reached near-universality.182 countries have signed the Treaty. 154 countries have ratified the Treaty.
Why    has    the    Treaty notentered into force yet?	The Treaty’s entry into force depends on 44 specific States that must have signed and ratified the Treaty.These States had nuclear facilities at the time the Treaty was negotiated and adopted.When the Treaty enters into force it provides a legally binding norm against nuclear testing.

Trans-Pacific Partnership (TPP) Agreement

Status of 44 specific	36 of these States have signed and ratified the Treaty.5 States have signed
States	but not ratified the Treaty: China, Egypt, Iran, Israel, and the United States. (The United States and China are the only remaining NPT Nuclear Weapon States that have not ratified the CTBT).India, North Korea and Pakistan even have not signed the Treaty.
Why ratification required	The ratification symbolizes the official sanction of a treaty to make it legally binding for the government of a country.This process involves the treaty’s adoption by the legislature of a country such as the parliament.
Why India not signed CTBT	It is discriminatory in nature as it gives advantage to the nuclear weapon holders. CTBT bans all nuclear explosions but is silent on nuclear disar- mament.India wants the world nuclear weapon free.

Nuclear Non-proliferation Treaty (NPT)

When came into force	March 1970.
Purpose	The treaty covers three mutually reinforcing pillars—disarmament, nonprolifer- ation, and peaceful uses of nuclear energy—and is the basis for international cooperation on stopping the spread of nuclear weapons.
No of countries sub- scribed	190
Classification of coun- tries	190 states-parties are classified in two categories:Nuclear-weapon states (NWS)— US, Russia, China, France, and UK, Non-nuclear-weapon states (NNWS).

Obligation	Countries with nuclear weapons will move towards disarmament; countries without nuclear weapons will not acquire them; and all countries can access peaceful nuclear technology.
Countries                  outside              the treaty	With its near-universal membership, the NPT has the widest adherence of any arms control agreement, with only North Korea, South Sudan, India, Israel, and Pakistan remaining outside the treaty.
Review Process	The Treaty allows for the Parties to gather every five years to review its operation.
IAEA	Treaty establishes a safeguards system under the responsibility of the Interna- tional Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA).Safeguards are used to verify compliance with the Treaty through inspections conducted by the IAEA.The Treaty promotes cooperation in the field of peaceful nuclear technology and equal access to this technology for all States parties, while safeguards prevent the diversion of fissile material for weapons use.
Why India not signed NPT	NPT came into force in 1970 and India first tested nuclear weapon in 1974.It does not regard India as Nuclear weapon states.Joining NPT as a NNWS would require India unilaterally giving up its nuclear weapons hence India opposed the NPT because It is discriminatory against the NNWS.

The Nuclear Suppliers Group (NSG)

About NSG	NSG is a group of nuclear supplier countries that seeks to contribute to the non-proliferation of nuclear weapons through the implementation of two sets of Guidelines for nuclear exports and nuclear-related exports.
Reason for Creation	NSG was created following the explosion in 1974 of a nuclear device by a non-nuclear-weapon State (actually India), which demonstrated that nuclear technology transferred for peaceful purposes could be misused.
Non-Proliferation Principle	Whereby a supplier, authorizes a transfer only when satisfied that the transfer would not contribute to the proliferation of nuclear weapons.
Working of NSG	NSG works on the basis of consensus.Overall responsibility for activities lies within NSG Plenary meetings that are held once a year.
Participating	Argentina, Australia, Austria, Belarus, Belgium, Brazil, Bulgaria, Canada,
Governments (48)	China, Croatia, Cyprus, Czech Republic, Denmark, Estonia, Finland, France, Germany, Greece, Hungary, Iceland, Ireland, Italy, Japan, Kazakhstan, South Korea, Latvia, Lithuania, Luxembourg, Malta, Mexico, Netherlands, New Zealand, Norway, Poland, Portugal, Romania, Russian Federation, Serbia, Slovakia, Slovenia, South Africa, Spain, Sweden, Switzerland, Turkey, Ukraine, United Kingdom, And United States.
India’s Position	China has opposed India’s bid to get NSG membership on the ground that it has not signed the NPT.It stated that if India is admitted, Pakistan should also be admitted simultaneously.
Benefits on joining	Membership of the NSG would enable India to have enhanced and unin- terrupted access to nuclear technology, fuel and materials required for its expanding civil nuclear programme.

Bank for International Settlements (BIS)

About BIS

Established on 17 May 1930, BIS is the world’s oldest international financial organization.The BIS has 60 member central banks, representing countries from around the world that together make up about 95% of world GDP.

Mission	The mission of the BIS is to serve central banks in their pursuit of monetary and financial stability, to foster international cooperation in those areas and to act as a bank for central banks.
HQ	Basel, Switzerland.
Capital and membership	The Bank’s capital is held by central banks only.60 central banks and mon- etary authorities are currently members of the BIS and have rights of voting and representation at General Meetings.
RBI membership	RBI is member.
Raghuram Rajan (Ex RBI Governor)	Rajan was the first Indian central bank Governor to become the vicechairman of BIS.

The Heart of Asia-Istanbul Process (HoA)

Founded	HoA was founded on November 2nd, 2011 in Istanbul, Turkey.
About HoA	It provides a platform for sincere and results-oriented regional cooperation by placing Afghanistan at its center, in recognition of the fact that a secure and stable Afghanistan is vital to the prosperity of the Heart of Asia region.
Participating countries (14)	Afghanistan, Azerbaijan, China, India, Iran, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyz Republic, Pakistan, Russia, Saudi Arabia, Tajikistan, Turkey, Turkmenistan, United Arab Emirates.
Three main pillars	The Heart of Asia-Istanbul Process has three main pillars, which work together to build regional consensus on how we can achieve our shared goals. They include:1. Political Consultations2. Confidence Building Meas- ures (CBMs)3. Cooperation with Regional Organizations.
Heart of Asia – Istanbul Process Desk.	Kabul, Afghanistan.

The India Development Foundation of Overseas Indians (IDF-OI)*

Set up by	Government of India in 2008 as a not-for-profit Trust
Purpose	It facilitates philanthropic contributions by Overseas Indians into social and develop- ment projects in India.The Trust is exempt from provisions of the Foreign Contributions Regulation Act (FCRA), 2010 of the Ministry of Home Affairs which enables IDF-OI to receive foreign contributions.
Administered by	Board of Trustees, chaired by Smt. Sushma Swaraj, Minister of External Affairs.
Charges/Fee	IDF-OI does not recover any administrative cost from contributions received from Overseas Indians.

International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA)

About IAEA	It was set up as the world’s “Atoms for Peace” organization in 1957 within the United Nations family.The IAEA is the world’s centre for cooperation in the nuclear field.
Function	It works with its Member States and multiple partners worldwide to promote the safe, secure and peaceful use of nuclear technologies.Hence contribute to international peace and security and the United Nations’ Sustainable Development Goals.
Reporting	In terms of its Statute, IAEA reports annually to the UN General Assembly and, when appropriate, to the UN Security Council regarding States’ noncompliance with safe- guards obligations, as well as on matters relating to international peace and security.
HQ	Vienna International Centre in Vienna, Austria.

India’s member- ship

India is member.

Quadrilateral Coordination Group (QCG) for Afghan Peace

Formed by Afghanistan, China, Pakistan and the United States for Afghan Peace and reconciliation process.

Quadrilateral Cooperation and Coordination Mechanism (QCCM) to counter terrorism

The armed forces of Afghanistan, China, Pakistan and Tajikistan have formed a Quadrilateral Cooper- ation and Coordination Mechanism (QCCM) to counter terrorism.

The Indian Ocean Rim Association (IORA)

Launched at	First Ministerial Meeting in Mauritius on 6-7 March 1997.This meeting adopted the IORA Charter.
Priority Areas	To promote the sustained growth and balanced development of the region and of the Member States, and to create common ground for regional economic co-oper- atio
Member States (21)	Australia, Bangladesh, Comoros, India, Indonesia, Iran, Kenya, Madagascar, Malaysia, Mauritius, Mozambique, Oman, Seychelles, Singapore, Somalai, South Africa, Sri Lanka, Tanzania, Thailand, UAE and Yemen.
Dialogue Partners (7)	China Egypt France Japan United KingdomU nited States Germany.

Group of Twenty (G20)

History	The G20 started in 1999 as a meeting of Finance Ministers and Central Bank Governors in the aftermath of the Asian financial crisis.In 2008, the first G20 Leaders’ Summit was held in Washington D.C. (United States of America), and the group played a key role in responding to the global financial crisis.
About G20	The Group of Twenty (G20) is the central forum for international cooperation on financial and economic issues.
members	Argentina, Australia, Brazil, Canada, China, France, Germany, India, Indonesia, Italy, Japan, Republic of Korea, Mexico, Russia, Saudi Arabia, South Africa, Turkey, the United Kingdom, the United States and the European Union.
Meetings	G20 leaders meet annually.In addition, Finance Ministers and Central Bank Governors meet regularly during the year to discuss ways to strengthen the global economy, reform international financial institutions, improve financial regulation and implement the key economic reforms that are needed in each member economy.
G20 Summit	In 2017, the G20 Summit will be held in Hamburg by the German Presidency.
W20	The Turkish Presidency in 2015 proposed establishing the Women-20 (W20) as a G20 engagement group to focus on promoting gender inclusiveness and gender equality.The mission of the W20 is to promote global gender-inclusive economic growth.

United Nations Economic and Social Commission for Asia and the Pacific( ESCAPE)

About ESCAPE

ESCAP is the regional development arm of the United Nations for the Asia-Pacific region established in 1947.

HQ	Bangkok, Thailand.
India’s membership	INDIA is a member.

International Solar Alliance (ISA)

launched at	UN Climate Change Conference in Paris.
launched by	India and France.
	Purpose ISA will be dedicated to promotion of solar energy for making solar energy a valuable source of affordable and reliable green and clean energy in 121 member countries located in between Tropic of Cancer and Tropic of Capricorn.
HQ	Gurgaon (ISA is India’s first international and inter-governmental organization head- quartered in India).

India-Brazil-South Africa Dialogue Forum

About IBSA	IBSA is a trilateral developmental initiative amongst the governments of India, Brazil and South Africa to promote, inter-alia, South-South cooperation and exchange.
Establishment	IBSA was formalised by the Brasilia Declaration of 6 June 2003, which mentions India, Brazil and South Africa’s democratic credentials, their condition as developing nations and their capacity of acting on a global scale as the main reasons for the three countries to come together.

Hague Code of Conduct [HCOC]

About HCOC	The HCOC is the only multilateral transparency and confidence building instrument con- cerning the spread of ballistic missiles capable of carrying weapons of mass destruction.
Voluntary	The HCoC is a voluntary, legally non-binding.By subscribing to the HCoC, members voluntarily commit themselves politically to provide pre-launch notifications (PLNs) on ballistic missile and space-launch vehicle launches (SLVs) and test flights.
Members	138 countries.
India’s status	India has joined the HCoC in 2016.
Benefit	India joining HCoC and Missile Technology Control Regime (MTCR) would strengthen its case at the Nuclear Suppliers Group (NSG).
Is the HCoC endorsed by the United Nations?	Yes.

The Missile Technology Control Regime (MTCR)

About MTCR	MTCR is an informal political understanding among states that seek to limit the proliferation of missiles and missile technology.
Background	The regime was formed in 1987 by the G-7 industrialized countries (Canada, France, Germany, Italy, Japan, the UK, and the United States).There are currently 35 countries that are members of the MTCR.
India’s status	India has joined in 2016.
Benefit	MTCR membership is expected to ease the access to high technology for India’s space programme.
Relationship between the MTCR and the UN	While there is no formal linkage, the activities of the MTCR are consistent with the UN’s non-proliferation and export control efforts.

Forum for India–Pacific Islands Cooperation (FIPIC)

When Launched	During Prime Minister, Narendra Modi’s visit to Suva, Fiji in November 2014 (First Summit).
14 island countries	Cook Islands, Fiji, Kiribati, Marshall Islands, Micronesia, Nauru, Niue, Palau, Papua New Guinea, Samoa, Solomon Islands, Tonga, Tuvalu, and Vanuatu.
Second summit	Jaipur.

The Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC)

About OPEC	OPEC is a permanent intergovernmental organization of 13 oilexporting developing nations that coordinates and unifies the petroleum policies of its Member Countries.
Created	At the Baghdad Conference in 1960.
Founding Members (5)	Iran, Iraq, Kuwait, Saudi Arabia and Venezuela.
Other members (8)	Qatar, Libya, United Arab Emirates, Algeria, Nigeria, Ecuador, Angola, and Gabon.
Purpose	to secure fair and stable prices for petroleum producers;An efficient, economic and regular supply of petroleum to consuming nations; and a fair return on capital to those investing in the industry.
HQ	Vienna, Austria

Gulf Cooperation council

Member	Bahrain, Kuwait, Oman, Qatar, Saudi Arabia, and the United Arab Emirates.
HQ	Riyadh, Saudi Arabia.

Eurasian Economic Union

About EEU	It has international legal personality and is established by the Treaty on the Eurasian Economic Union.
Member-States (5)	Russia, Armenia, Belarus, Kazakhstan and Kyrgyz Republic.

East Asia Summit (EAS)

Established in	2005
About EAS	It is an initiative of ASEAN.It is a unique Leaders-led forum of 18 countries of the Asia-Pacific region formed to further the objectives of regional peace, security and prosperity.
Member countries	10 ASEAN Member States (i.e. Brunei Darussalam, Cambodia, Indonesia, Lao PDR, Malaysia, Myanmar, Singapore, Thailand, Philippines and Vietnam), Aus- tralia, China, India, Japan, New Zealand, Republic of Korea, Russia and the USA.
India’s membership	India is a founding member.

The Financial Action Task Force (FATF)

Establishment	FATF is an inter-governmental body established in 1989 by the Ministers of its Member jurisdictions among 12 nations around the Pacific, making it the world’s largest.
Objectives	to set standards and promote effective implementation of legal, regulatory and operational measures for combating money laundering, terrorist financing and other related threats to the integrity of the international financial system.

Secretariat	Secretariat is located at the OECD Headquarters in Paris.
India’s membership	Indian is a member.

The Australia Group (AG)

About AG	AG is an informal forum of countries which, through the harmonization of export controls, seeks to ensure that exports do not contribute to the development of chem- ical or biological weapons.
India’s Position	India is not a participant.

Wassenaar Arrangement

About Wassenaar	The Wassenaar Arrangement has been established in order to contribute to regional and international security and stability, by promoting transparency and greater respon- sibility in transfers of conventional arms and dual-use goods and technologies, thus preventing destabilizing accumulations.
Aim	To prevent the acquisition of these items by terrorists.
India’s Position	India is not a participant.

East Asia Summit (EAS)

Purpose It would create a free-trade zone among 12 nations around the Pacific, making it the world’s largest.

Trans-Pacific Partnership (TPP) Agreement

Purpose It would create a free-trade zone among 12 nations around the Pacific, making it the world’s largest.