Geithner to travel to India next month

Washington: US Treasury Secretary Timothy Geithner would travel to India early next month for the third round of high-level economic dialogue between the two countries, an official announcement said on Wednesday.

During this India trip that would revolve around the India-US Economic Financial Partnership, Geithner would travel to Mumbai, besides New Delhi on October 9 and 10.

The visit was postponed early this year after the then Finance Minister, Pranab Mukherjee, resigned to contest presidential elections.

This would be the first high-level economic dialogue between India and the United States, after P Chidambaram took over as the Finance Minister, following the resignation of Mukherjee.

"The US-India Economic and Financial Partnership has served as a platform for greater cooperation on economic issues of importance to both nations," the Department of Treasury said in a statement.

"Both countries recognise the importance of expanding bilateral economic engagement, noting the rapid growth of US-India economic ties and the increasing range of global macroeconomic and financial issues, including those related to illicit finance, on which the United States and India cooperate," Treasury Department said.

Geithner and Chidambaram would co-chair the third US-India Economic and Financial Partnership in New Delhi on October 9. Later that day, Geithner will participate in a moderated discussion hosted by the Confederation of Indian Industry and the US-India Business Council.

On October 10, Geithner will travel to Mumbai, the country's financial center, to meet with Reserve Bank of India (RBI) Governor Duvvuri Subbarao, as well as Indian business leaders from a variety of industries.

From India, Geithner would travel to Japan.