India-Costa Rica Trade Hits $ 400 mn
Mark
Ø Bilateral Trade Grows to USD 391 Million
as India and Costa Rica Review Economic Cooperation
·
India and Costa Rica held the 1st
Joint Economic and Trade Committee (JETCO) meeting virtually on 6–7 July
2026.
·
The meeting was co-chaired by Mr. Vimal Anand, Joint
Secretary, Department of Commerce (India), and Ms. Adriana Castro, General
Director of Foreign Trade (Costa Rica).
·
Both sides reviewed bilateral trade and investment relations
and discussed ways to expand economic cooperation.
·
Bilateral merchandise trade reached approximately USD
391 million in 2025–26, reflecting steady growth.
·
Discussions covered:
o
Trade and investment policies
o
Standards, accreditation and certification
o
Regulatory frameworks
o
Conformity assessment
o
Food safety
o
Pharmaceutical regulation
o
Export certification
·
The Indian side highlighted opportunities for cooperation
in:
o
Pharmaceuticals
o
Digital technologies
o
Manufacturing
o
Innovation
·
Costa Rica shared its experience on:
o
Central American trade integration
o
Regional trade negotiations
·
JETCO, established under the Memorandum
of Understanding (MoU) on Economic Cooperation, serves as the main institutional
platform for reviewing bilateral trade, investment, and economic cooperation.
·
Both countries agreed to:
o
Strengthen business-to-business (B2B) engagement
o
Enhance institutional cooperation
o
Promote regular interactions between ministries, regulators,
and industry
o
Use JETCO to deepen trade, investment, and sectoral cooperation.
[ABS News Service/08.07.2026]
The 1st Meeting of the India-Costa Rica
Joint Economic and Trade Committee (JETCO) was held virtually on 6-7 July 2026.
The meeting was co-chaired by Joint Secretary, Department of Commerce, Ministry
of Commerce & Industry, Vimal Anand, from India and General Director of Foreign
Trade, Ms. Adriana Castro, from the Republic of Costa Rica.
During the meeting, both sides reviewed
bilateral trade and investment relations, exchanged views on their respective trade
and investment regimes, and noted with satisfaction the steady growth in bilateral
merchandise trade to approximately USD 391 million in 2025–26. They also discussed
opportunities to further expand trade and investment.
The two sides exchanged information on
their respective standards, accreditation, certification and regulatory frameworks,
and explored cooperation in areas such as standards development, conformity assessment,
food safety, pharmaceutical regulation and export certification to facilitate trade
and reduce technical barriers.
The Indian side highlighted its strengths
and identified opportunities for enhanced cooperation in pharmaceuticals, digital
technologies, manufacturing and innovation, while the Costa Rican side presented
an overview of the Central American trade integration regime and its experience
in regional trade negotiations.
The JETCO, established under the Memorandum
of Understanding on Economic Cooperation between India and Costa Rica, serves as
the principal institutional mechanism for reviewing bilateral trade and investment
relations, addressing issues of mutual interest and identifying new avenues for
economic cooperation.
Both sides agreed to strengthen business-to-business
engagement, promote institutional cooperation, and encourage regular interactions
between the concerned Ministries, regulatory authorities and industry. Reaffirming
their commitment to deepening bilateral economic ties, they agreed to utilise the
JETCO as a key platform for advancing trade, investment and sectoral cooperation.