Finnish co, Exim sign pact

MUMBAI, SEP 23: Finland will sign a acirc;euro;tilde;treaty on investment protectionacirc;euro;trade; with India by the year-end, Foreign Trade Minister of Finland Kimmo Sasi said today. acirc;euro;oelig;We have sent our proposals in this regard to the Indian government and are yet to get its reply. But three points, where India feels some changes are required, will be sorted out by the year-end paving the way for signing the treaty,acirc;euro; Sasi said.

Finnish Fund Corporation, a developmental finance agency of Finland, has signed a MoU with the Exim Bank, under which the former would offer soft loans to health care and social sectors in India through the latter. The MoU also envisages facilitation of two way investments by the parties free-of-cost and exchange of information, he said.

acirc;euro;oelig;Finland has a global fund for offering soft loans in several countries, but the fund to be earmarked for India would be decided later by the fundacirc;euro;trade;s board,acirc;euro; he added.Ram Tarneja, honorary counsul of Finland in Mumbai since 1984, was conferred the knighthood by the President of the Republic of Finland. Handing over the knighthood Sasi praised Tarneja for his selfless services to Finland. The Finnish delegation also met industrialists Ratan Tata and Dhirubhai Ambani and visited software development facilities of Tata Consultancy Services in the city, he added.