Mumbai: Italy on Wednesday said it is exploring the
possibility of creating "preferred" shipping routes for India
to facilitate more trade between the two countries.
Italian Minister for Economic Development Claudio Scajola
invited Indian companies to invest in the European country's
logistics, docks, storage facilities and containers, to be
exclusively used by Indians.
"We actually are planning to identify preferred shipping
routes and preferred status for India in terms of logistics
and port development between the ports of Mumbai and Venice
and Chennai and Genoa," Scajola told reporters here.
The Minister is in India as part of efforts to boost
bilateral trade that currently stands at USD 8 billion.
Scajola met with Union Shipping Minister G K Vasan in
Delhi yesterday and discussed collaboration in the sector.
"We plan to sign a collaboration agreement between the
ports of Venice and Mumbai and between the ports of Genoa and
Chennai. I hope these two agreements can be signed by next
spring, because in this way Italy can be a gateway for India
to the Mediterranean and the rest of Europe," he said.
He said goods transportation from Mumbai to Genoa has
tripled in the last three years.
PTI
First Published: Wednesday, December 16, 2009, 23:01