(Yicai Global) May 31 -- India hopes for a greater degree of access to the Chinese market, particularly in the pharmaceuticals, tech services, and agricultural sectors, said the Asian country's Commerce and Industry Minister Suresh Prabhu. 

Trade between the two Asian nations has increased significantly, from USD3 billion in 2000 to more than USD84.4 billion dollars last year, reported Russian news agency Sputnik Prabhu as saying, while pointing at a more than twenty-fold surge. The trade deficit persisted at USD51.8 billion.

India's exports to China have increased, despite the fact that imports from China have grown faster, Prabhu said. Indian exports to China totaled USD16.3 billion, while showing a 40-percent surge since the year before. The jump was fueled by an increased demand in diamonds, along with copper, iron ore, organic chemicals, and cotton yarn

The growing trade volume signals an economic thaw amid political tensions, catalyzed by the China-Pakistan Economic Corridor, Beijing blocking India's entry into the Nuclear Suppliers Group, and the military standoff at Doklam, according to The Times of India.

The two countries' commerce ministers have talked about trade access in New Delhi in March, said Prabhu, adding that India's premier Narendra Modi had a fruitful discussion with President Xi Jinping on the same issue at an informal summit held in central China's Wuhan in Hubei province in April.

Editor: Emmi Laine