Colombo: With Sri Lanka having spent $ 40 million out of the $ 100 million credit extended by India, New Delhi on October 15 released another $ 30 million to the island-nation as the two countries were set to expand bilateral trade ties to cover services and investments.

External Affairs Minister Yaswant Sinha told reporters in Colombo that the Prime Ministers of the two countries will take up the proposed Comprehensive Economic Partnership Agreement (CEPA) during the Lankan leaders visit to the capital over the weekend.

Prime Minister Ranil Wickremesinghe and Atal Behari Vajpayee will discuss the CEPA as the two countries were committed to further increasing bilateral trade, which currently stands at an annual one billion Dollars.

"We are working on this (CEPA) together and it will be ready when the two Prime Ministers meet in New Delhi," Sinha said shortly after bilateral talks with his Sri Lankan counterpart Tyronne Fernando.

The two Ministers concluded talks under the Joint Commission, which reviewed bilateral relations and trade cooperation for the fifth time since 1998.

"Trade balance will gradually come down with Indian companies able to import more things from Sri Lanka under the Free Trade Agreement (FTA)," Sinha said referring to FTA that is in place since 1998.

PTI