Trade Negotiations

India's trade negotiations must be accompanied by sector-specific strategies to upgrade and align industries with global standards

Most issues have been resolved and talks are progressing smoothly, with the long-pending India-US trade deal expected to move to the approval stage soon

On Wednesday, Agrawal had said that India is looking for a "win-win solution" for both sides in its trade talks with the US that would also address the "tariff issue"

India and the US held marathon talks in New Delhi to push forward a trade agreement, signalling easing tensions despite tariff disputes and setting the stage for further negotiations

PM Modi held a joint phone call with EU leaders, pledging to conclude the FTA talks by year-end, discuss the 2026 India-EU Summit, and advance the India-Middle East-Europe Economic Corridor (IMEEC)

Responding to the blowback, the White House softened its stance on April 9, imposing a 90-day pause and a uniform 10 per cent tariff on most imports, excluding China

An Indian delegation led by chief negotiator Rajesh Agrawal is scheduled to visit the US later this month

The India-UK FTA is being touted as a modern, and the most comprehensive agreement that India has signed till now - comprising non-trade issues such as gender, labour, anti-corruption, sustainability

India and the US are looking at an "early mutual wins" before finalising the first phase of the proposed bilateral trade agreement, the commerce ministry said on Tuesday. Chief negotiators of both the countries concluded a three-day talks in Washington last week. During the meetings in Washington, the teams deliberated on wide-ranging subjects including tariff (related to goods) and non-tariff matters. "The team discussed the pathway for concluding the first tranche of the mutually beneficial, multi-sector Bilateral Trade Agreement by fall (September-October) of 2025, including through opportunities for early mutual wins," it said in a statement. While productive sectoral expert level engagements have taken place virtually, in-person engagements are planned from May end.

The Indo-Pacific Economic Framework for Prosperity (IPEF) negotiations have mostly been conducted in secrecy with limited public input and it raises concerns whether the member countries, including India, were able to protect their key interests, think tank GTRI said on Sunday. The 14-member IPEF bloc was launched jointly by the US and other partner countries of the Indo-Pacific region on May 23, 2022, in Tokyo. Together, they account for 40 per cent of the world's economic output and 28 per cent of trade. The framework is structured around four pillars relating to trade, supply chains, clean economy and fair economy. India has joined all the pillars except the trade. Australia, Brunei Darussalam, Fiji, India, Indonesia, Japan, Korea, Malaysia, New Zealand, the Philippines, Singapore, Thailand, the US, and Vietnam are members of the bloc. The countries have signed pacts on supply chains, clean economy, and fair economy so far. India signed the clean and fair economy pacts on ...

Both nations had signed the interim trade deal, also known as India-Australia Economic Cooperation and Trade Agreement (ECTA) that came into force on December 29, 2022

The commerce ministry held deliberations with experts, former officers and senior officials from different departments on framing a standard operating procedure for free trade pacts and other related issues under these agreements, an official release said on Tuesday. The commerce ministry in the release stated that the 'Chintan Shivir' was organised on May 16-17 at Neemrana, Rajasthan. "The Shivir facilitated discussions on various issues related to negotiations of Free Trade Agreements (FTAs) by India, its position and strategy that should be adopted for such negotiations," the ministry said. The participants also deliberated on standard operating procedures (SoP) for FTA negotiations, capacity building and resource management for trade negotiations as well as certain contemporary issues under modern FTAs such as labour, environment, and gender. It said that Commerce Secretary Sunil Barthwal spearheaded the deliberations which sought to chart a strategic course for India's future

The 13th Ministerial Conference (MC) will be held from February 26-29 at Abu Dhabi, United Arab Emirates (UAE)

Economists said a comprehensive trade deal with Australia was a step in the right direction

"Assuming a successful conclusion to the trade negotiations, India should seek deeper integration into European supply chains, presenting itself as an alternative to China," he said.

The negotiations should be complete within 30 days, Goyal told a joint news briefing with Australian Trade Minister Dan Tehan

Minister bats for 'much larger engagement' like a bilateral trade agreement

It is time India deviates from the WTO-dominated consensus approach to trade negotiations, and adapts to the new landscape dominated by global value chains and mega-regional agreements