Rise in protectionism threatens gains from globalisation: Modi

TIL Desk/National/Hamburg/ Asserting the need to support and sustain a “regime of openness”, Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Friday said rise in protectionism threatens to take away the gains from globalisation.

At the G20 Summit here, which is being attended by US President Donald Trump, Chinese President Xi Jinping and other leaders, Modi stressed that the grouping should speak in one voice to support and sustain “a regime of openness”Talking about the Indian economy, Modi said the decision on demonetisation has “dealt a blow to corruption, boosted digitisation and enlarged the formal economy”.

In efforts to deal with corruption and the black money menace, the Indian government had demonetised old Rs 500 and 1,000 currency notes in November. Asserting that the government is ready to carry forward the fight against black money and corruption, Modi hoped that the G20 would assume leadership to act on all important issues.

The Prime Minister said the implementation of automatic exchange of financial account information on a reciprocal basis will help curb black money and illicit flows. “With Base Erosion and Profit Sharing adopted, we are ready to carry forward the fight against black money and corruption,” he added.