Australia says 'very close' to finalising free-trade agreement with India

A free trade agreement between India and Australia has been more than 10 years in the making, with negotiations beginning in 2011 before being suspended four years later in 2015

Australia is on the brink of finalizing a free-trade agreement with India with an announcement possible in “coming days,” as the government works to strike a deal less than two months before an expected May election.

Australian Trade Minister Dan Tehan said that he and his Indian counterpart Piyush Goyal were meeting daily and “getting very close” to reaching a deal. Tehan said he was hopeful that there could be an announcement soon.

“Both sides are working feverishly to make sure we can get an agreement that’s in both our national interests,” he said in a Bloomberg Television interview. 

A free