China to reduce tariffs, increase imports of Indian medicines

The foreign ministry of China said India and China had agreed on reducing duties on Indian medicines, especially cancer drugs, which are in great demand here because they are much cheaper than Western alternatives. The move to cut tariffs on Indian drugs comes at a time when the Chinese movie Dying To Survive, based loosely on the real life story of a cancer-afflicted man who smuggled Indian drugs into China, is doing roaring business. In a related development, the foreign ministry said India and China had also slashed import tariffs of a range of products from July 1, following the fourth round of negotiations under the Asia Pacific Trade Agreement (APTA), which includes Bangladesh, Laos, South Korea and Sri Lanka. China said it will reduce tariffs on 8,549 items, including chemical and agricultural products, while India will do the same for 3,142 products.