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India is at present negotiating free trade agreements with a number of trading partners, including the US and European Union, Commerce and Industry Minister Piyush Goyal said on Friday. India is working with its 'trusted' trading partners through these agreements to boost economic ties, he said. "We have all seen trade being weaponised. We have all seen the importance of having trusted partners around the world," he said, adding that at this moment, India is in talks with individual countries and groups of nations totalling about 50. The remarks come at a time when a steep hike in tariffs by the US has disrupted global trade. The Donald Trump administration has imposed a 50 per cent import duty on Indian goods entering American markets since August 27. The minister informed that GCC (Gulf Cooperation Council) too is interested in trade pact talks. GCC is a union of six countries in the Gulf region Saudi Arabia, UAE, Qatar, Kuwait, Oman and Bahrain. New Delhi has already implemen
Commerce and Industry Minister Piyush Goyal on Tuesday said the ministry has started work on further decriminalisation of minor business offences through the third edition of Jan Vishwas bill. He said that the ministry has already identified about 275-300 provisions, which can be decriminalised. "Preparations for Jan Vishwas Bill-3 are underway," he said here while addressing a conference of domestic traders. The Jan Vishwas (Amendment of Provisions) Bill 2025, which seeks to decriminalise certain minor offences to promote ease of living and business, was introduced in the Lok Sabha in August and referred to a Select Committee. The committee has been tasked to submit its report to the House by the first day of the next session of Parliament. In 2023, the first edition of the law was implemented, which seeks to promote ease of business by decriminalising minor offences through amendments in 183 provisions of 42 Acts. He suggested that the traders' community identify more provision
India and Canada have agreed to resume negotiations for a Free Trade Agreement (FTA) with an aim to increase the two-way trade to USD 50 billion by 2030, according to Commerce and Industry Minister Piyush Goyal. A FTA or Comprehensive Economic Partnership Agreement (CEPA) has many strategic elements to it and it is a demonstration of the trust between the two countries, Goyal said here at an event on Monday. The pact would give confidence to investors, businesses of both sides, he said. "We have agreed to begin negotiations on a high-ambition CEPA and double the trade between the two nations by 2030," he said, adding the two countries are natural allies and do not compete with each other. The strengths of India and Canada can become a force multiplier for businesses and investors, Goyal said. "There is a lot that we can learn from Canada and a lot we can offer Canada. There is a lot of potential on critical minerals, critical minerals processing technologies. There is a good ...
Commerce and Industry Minister Piyush Goyal on Sunday called on Israeli President Isaac Herzog and discussed trade and investment ties between the two countries. He said the discussions covered the full spectrum of bilateral strategic partnership, including trade and investment, science and technology, innovation, and deeper economic engagement. "Shared the positive outcomes of the Business Forum and the CEOs Forum, and the first big step towards FTA negotiations. Also underlined India's robust growth story and the wide-ranging business opportunities for Israeli partners," Goyal said in a social media post. The Indian minister also called on Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu at the conclusion of his three-day visit. "Updated him on my discussions with Minister @NirBarkat and the successful holding of Business Forum and CEOs Forum held with over 60-member Indian business delegation that accompanied me," he said. Goyal also highlighted the signing of the Terms of Reference t
The guidelines for the Rs 25,060-crore Export Promotion Mission (EPM) are likely to be released from next week, detailing its components and benefits for the industry, Commerce and Industry Minister Piyush Goyal said. The government, on November 12, approved the EPM with an outlay of Rs 25,060 crore for six financial years, beginning 2025-26, to help exporters deal with high tariffs imposed by the US. The mission will be implemented through two sub-schemes -- Niryat Protsahan (Rs 10,401 crore) and Niryat Disha (Rs 14,659 crore). "The guidelines for the export promotion mission will be released soon. I think the details, including its elements and how the industry can benefit from it, will be released next week," he told PTI. Under the Export Promotion Mission, priority support will be extended to sectors impacted by recent global tariff escalations, such as textiles, leather, gems and jewellery, engineering goods, and marine products. These sectors are facing challenges in the US
India and Israel are considering implementing their proposed free trade agreement (FTA) in two phases to ensure early benefits for the trade community of both countries, Commerce and Industry Minister Piyush Goyal said on Sunday. India and Israel on Thursday inked terms of reference (ToR) to formally launch negotiations for the agreement. The ToR include market access for goods by eliminating tariff and non-tariff barriers, investment facilitation, simplification of customs procedures, increasing cooperation for innovation and technology transfer, and easing norms to promote trade in services. "We are considering doing this in two tranches. A decision will be taken when the talks begin. Both ministers are keen to finalise the first phase early so that the trade community benefits sooner," Goyal said here. The minister is in Israel to meet leaders and businesses to discuss ways to boost bilateral trade and investments. He is leading a 60-member business delegation. Goyal said that
India and Israeli startups can collaborate in areas such as cybersecurity and medical devices to boost innovation ecosystem, Commerce and Industry Minister Piyush Goyal said on Friday. He said one of the key elements of the proposed trade agreement between the two countries will be technology and innovation collaboration. "We can collaborate with Israel to promote our own startup ecosystem, which we are aspiring to take it to the levels of deep tech and high quality innovation at competitive prices, given the economies of scale that India has to offer," Goyal told reporters here. The minister is here to hold bilateral trade talks with his Israeli counterpart Nir Barkat. Goyal is leading a 60-member business delegation here. "We are looking at deep partnership with Israel who has one startup with every 1,000 people," he said. Israel has converted adversity into opportunity and their agriculture requirements and modern technologies developed in the field for health and climate chang
The progress on the proposed India-?Israel free trade agreement (FTA) is expected to be reviewed during Commerce and Industry Minister Piyush Goyal's three-day visit to Tel Aviv this week, an official statement said on Wednesday. The minister is leading a 60-member business delegation to Israel, where he would hold discussions with leaders and businesses on ways to boost bilateral trade, investments, and promote innovation. The visit would conclude on November 22. "Progress on the proposed India-?Israel FTA is also expected to be reviewed," the commerce ministry said. India and Israel are negotiating the agreement since May 2010. Eight rounds have been held so far. In October 2021, the two countries agreed to resume the negotiations. During 2024-25, India's exports to that country dipped 52 per cent to USD 2.14 billion from USD 4.52 billion in 2023-24. Imports, too, fell 26.2 per cent to USD 1.48 billion last fiscal year. India is Israel's second-largest trading partner in Asia. .
The Trade Intelligence and Analytics (TIA) portal will open up new insights for importers, exporters, startups, and MSMEs of the country, Commerce and Industry Minister Piyush Goyal has said. Launching the portal here on Tuesday, he said the platform will help exporters better utilise the free trade agreements implemented by India so far. Developed by the Department of Commerce, the TIA Portal is a one-stop trade intelligence and analytics platform that integrates multiple global and national databases along with macro-economic indicators into a unified analytical model offering over 270 analytics. The platform provides real-time, interactive insights on India and global trade, commodities and sectoral analytics, market intelligence, including export opportunities, and competitor analysis. It also includes automated trade reports and tracking of trade trends for manufacturing sectors related to PLI (production linked incentive) and critical minerals. Vanlalram Sanga, Economic Advi
Commerce and Industry Minister Piyush Goyal on Tuesday called for examining services sector trade data as it would help stakeholders make the best decisions. While launching the Trade Intelligence and Analytics (TIA) Portal here, he said the industry should increase utilisation of free trade agreements (FTAs). The portal will help exporters better utilise the Free Trade Agreements, the minister said. "At some point, services data needs to be also examined. Currently it's a black box. There is hardly any validated decent level of analysis of services data," he said here. He added that data such as Germany needing 90,000 workers and Europe and Japan requiring a large number of caregivers are not known to people in smaller cities. There are a vast number of opportunities in the service sector globally that will now be available to all, Goyal said. "Only the commerce ministry knows that," he said, adding, "We have to be more transparent" with trade data to help stakeholders make the