Record bilateral trade between India, Argentina in 2019 boosted by agriculture

Dinesh Bhatia (Indian Ambassador to Argentina) stated that in 2019, the bilateral trade between India and Argentina reached a historic record while his Argentine counterpart, Daniel Chuburu, stressed that the trade between the two countries could be strengthened through cooperation in the area of agricultural productivity. 

The discussion between the two ambassadors took place as part of a talk organized by UPL to present its new product, the therapeutic seed fungicide, Rancona Trio.

According to Bhatia, the trade between India and Argentina totaled US$3.09 billion, an amount never seen before, meaning that their bilateral trade doubled in ten years. India, which receives 2.6% of national exports, is the seventh largest trading partner of Argentina.

Chuburu explained that this doubling in trade is expected to happen again in less time and he expects Argentina to share, with India, its knowledge of productivity improvement per hectare and post-harvest management, given that that country has high losses.

"India needs food security, not only in terms of self-sufficiency, but also export capacity in some sectors to buy what cannot be produced. Argentina has a lot to learn from India, especially with regards to the pharmaceutical industry," Chuburu said.

Bhatia affirmed that the bilateral relationship between the two countries are strong, as they have taken advantage of their complementary characteristics, especially in the areas of agro-equipment and agrochemicals, adding that there are 15 Indian companies with a presence in Argentina. He also listed the national companies with a presence in his country, which are Globant, OLX and Techint.

Chuburu highlighted certain examples of the scientific and technological cooperation between the two sides, including the creation of Bío Jajá to combat bovine sadness, designed by the National Institute of Agricultural Technology and produced in Indian laboratories, as well as the control of foot-and-mouth disease and the creation of a livestock identification system.

Surplus balance, but concentrated

According to Chuburu, 90% of Argentinian exports to India are concentrated in two products, which are soybean oil and sunflower oil. Bhatia explained that although peanut production is very high in India, which is the fourth largest producer of peanuts in the world, there is the possibility of importing edible oils of various types, including peanut oil. "India's main exports to Argentina are herbicides and insecticides,” he said.

Rodrigo Ramírez (General Manager of UPL Argentina) added that the consumption of peanut butter in India has also increased, and that this could become another major Argentine export product.

But Chuburu has other ideas. He believes that Argentina could increase its technological exports, especially in the nuclear energy and radar sectors. "It is true that the trade balance is in surplus for Argentina. But it is important to diversify because of the concentration of these two products, which have little labor incorporation, making the situation fragile," he said.

The original Spanish version of this report is from LA NACION (by Malena Duchovny).