India, Australia to speed up trade deal after Lok Sabha elections

India, Australia trade deal may include deeper market access and outcomes in digital trade & goods

India and Australia are planning to “quickly and extensively” engage on a comprehensive trade deal “as soon as possible” after the Lok Sabha elections in India, sources told Business Standard.

The Comprehensive Economic Cooperation Agreement (CECA), or the comprehensive trade agreement, could include deeper market access and outcomes in areas including digital trade, goods, services, rules of origin and government procurement, and cooperation.
 

India has plans to be at the centre of supply chains of the future and a comprehensive partnership with Australia will assist the country, given the complementarities of “our two economies”, sources on the Australian side familiar with the matter said.
 

CECA negotiations began in February last year, nearly two months after the signing of the interim trade agreement, also known as the Economic Cooperation and Trade Agreement (ECTA). The two countries had signed the ECTA in April 2022. It kicked in later during the year — from December 29.

 

ECTA progress
 

In the first year of the agreement — January-December 2023 — India’s commerce department data showed that during 2023 (January-December), goods exported to Australia saw a 6.6 per cent contraction at $7.7 billion. The dip, however, was mainly on account of external factors. Imports from Australia also contracted 16.4 per cent year-on-year to $16.5 billion.
 

Despite the dip, some sectors saw robust growth in exports. Sources on the Australian side said the country’s imports of Indian agricultural products were up 15 per cent.
 

Australian imports of Indian industrial products were also up. For instance, imports of iron and steel products were up 16 per cent to $322 million. Apparel imports grew 6 per cent to $342 million and jewellery shipments to India saw 6 per cent growth to $169 million, sources said.
 

Australia and India’s chief negotiators for the CECA met in Canberra earlier this week. That apart, Commerce Secretary Sunil Barthwal, along with a team of officials, travelled to Australia to hold the India-Australia ECTA Joint Committee Meeting (JCM).
 

“This was an important demonstration of both sides’ commitment to a successful implementation of the ECTA, for mutual benefit, and an opportunity to celebrate growth in trade opportunities for both sides. The ECTA is working for Australia and India …Both sides want to build on positive outcomes of the ECTA, and recognise there is so much potential for growth in the bilateral economic partnership,” an official said.