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'Latin America will bail India out'

India can offset trade losses because of the economic sanctions by the developed world by foraying into a vast untapped Latin American market.

''India's export to Latin America is about 40 per cent of our total foreign trade. However, it forms only 0.2 per cent of the imports of the region leaving a huge potential untapped,'' experts at the Federation of Indian Export Organisation said.

The total imports of the Latin American region from the rest of the world is $ 250 billion. India had exported only $ 1.05 billion in textile and textile products, auto parts, bulk drugs in 1996-97.

India has trade with only 17 of the 50 countries in the region populated by 425 million people. Only five Latin American countries -- Brazil, Mexico, Chile, Columbia and Argentina -- attract almost 60 per cent of India's exports.

Experts were of the view that countries like Bahamas, Caymon Island, Surinam, Guinea, Uruguay which have good purchasing power have been left unexplored.

UNI