Page 3 - Free Trade Agreements

Xi meets Maldives Prez Muizzu, urges stronger ties via FTA implementation

Chinese President Xi Jinping met Maldives President Mohamed Muizzu here on Sunday and called for deepening bilateral ties with effective implementation of the Free Trade Agreement (FTA). The two leaders met on the sidelines of the Shanghai Cooperation Organisation (SCO) summit being held here on Sunday. The Maldives is a Dialogue Partner of the 10-member SCO bloc. Xi told Muizzu that the two countries have achieved positive progress in advancing Belt and Road cooperation, and China will continue to deepen practical cooperation with the Maldives to ensure the effective implementation of the China-Maldives FTA. Both countries should advance cooperation in areas including fisheries, marine scientific research, environmental protection, as well as disaster prevention and reduction, he said. For his part, Muizzu said the Maldives is willing to work with China to expand cooperation in areas such as trade, investment, housing construction and tourism, and to strengthen coordination and .

Qatar wants to negotiate trade pact with India, says Piyush Goyal

Commerce and Industry Minister Piyush Goyal on Friday said Free Trade Agreement (FTA) with Oman will be finalised soon, and Qatar also wants to negotiate a pact with India. He also assured exporters of all support to deal with the current global uncertainties at the trade front, which was caused due to unilateral actions of a country. The government is in consultation with all the stakeholders, including Indian Missions abroad, for diversification of exports, he said. He added that domestic consumption will get a boost from GST reforms. "Our exports this year will be higher than last year," Goyal said at an event here. India's share in global trade is only about 2 per cent, and about 40 per cent of items of the total exports to the US are out of the ambit of 50 per cent tariffs, so the impact will be less. Free Trade Agreement with Oman "will be finalised soon," he said, adding "Qatar also wants to do a trade agreement", and Saudi Arabia is also keen. Goyal added that talks with

India shifts focus to EU as US tariffs stall bilateral trade negotiations

With US tariffs squeezing exports and trade talks stalled, India banks on the UK FTA to push forward EU negotiations, covering autos, wines, procurement and digital trade

New Cloud lobby seeks 'national asset' status for India's strategic data

B-DIA is further lobbying for mandatory government-backed data backups, physical audits, and source code access from all foreign vendors operating in sovereign sectors

Indian retail sector to reach $1.93 trn by 2030: Deloitte-FICCI report

According to the report, the quick commerce segment is projected to reach $35 billion in Gross Merchandise Value (GMV) by 2030

FTAs may give India a share in $875 bn imports to EU, UK from China: BCG

India's proposed free trade agreement (FTAs) with the European Union could unlock access to a USD 875 billion market and bring tariff parity with ASEAN peers as the country navigates a critical juncture in the evolving global trade landscape, Boston Consulting Group (BCG), India-head Rahul Jain said. Last month, India and the UK inked a landmark FTA that will cut tariffs on British whisky, cars and an array of items, besides boosting bilateral trade by around USD 34 billion annually. The FTA is expected to benefit 99 per cent Indian exports from tariff. "The global trade environment is undergoing a structural transformation where geopolitics and economic nationalism are becoming as important as cost-efficiency and comparative advantage. Trade today is increasingly influenced by preferential access for partner nations, punitive tariffs and sanctions for adversaries and incentives that are rewiring supply chains to boost domestic production in strategic sectors," he told PTI. The ...

Basmati players cautious post trade deal with UK, shrimp exporters upbeat

While lower landed costs of basmati rice are welcome, traders feel it will be hard to entirely replace suppliers from Pakistan; meanwhile, marine and agricultural products are expected to see a bump

Datanomics: Market access vs mass survival in unequal India-US fields

The US move on tariff is seen as its pressure tactics on forcing New Delhi to sign a bilateral trade agreement (BTA) with Washington

India liquor stocks rally on UK trade deal, premium spirits focus

Shares of India's Tilaknagar Industries Ltd and Allied Blenders & Distillers Ltd have surged more than 40 per cent since late April

Piyush Goyal hopeful of concluding US trade deal after 'fantastic' progress

Trump threatened a 26 per cent tariff on Indian imports in April but paused implementation to allow for talks

India US in active talks on bilateral trade pact, govt tells Parliament

Teams of both India and the US are presently engaged in "active negotiations" on the Bilateral Trade Agreement (BTA), the government informed Parliament on Thursday. In a written response to a query in the Rajya Sabha, Minister of State for External Affairs Kirti Vardhan Singh also said, "Discussions are aimed at adopting an integrated approach to further strengthen and deepen bilateral trade relations, including through enhanced mutual market access, reduction of tariff and non-tariff barriers, and closer integration of supply chains." The Ministry of External Affairs was asked by Shiv Sena (UBT) MP Priyanka Chaturvedi whether the government has taken note of the recent announcement by the US administration regarding the reimposition of tariffs on Indian exports. "On the sidelines of the Quad Foreign Ministers' Meeting held in Washington, DC on 1 July 2025, the External Affairs Minister referred to the Bilateral Trade Agreement (BTA) negotiations that are going on between India and

Indo-UK deal to give Indian market access at lower tariff, says JLR

Jaguar Land Rover on Thursday said the India-UK free trade agreement would help the marquee automaker to access lower tariffs in India for its luxury models. Under the India-UK FTA, India will reduce tariffs on automotive imports from about 110 per cent to 10 per cent under quotas on both sides, benefiting companies such as Jaguar Land Rover (JLR). "We welcome this free trade agreement between the UK and India, which over time will deliver reduced tariff access to the Indian car market for JLR's luxury vehicles," a company spokesperson said in a statement. India is an important market for the company's British-built products and represents significant future growth opportunities, the spokesperson added. In a separate query regarding a change in pricing of imported products into the Indian market, a UK-based spokesperson said: "No decisions have been made on pricing." Around 60 per cent of the cars JLR sells in India, including popular models in the Range Rover portfolio Range Rov

Govt opposes EU plan for capital flow checks, cites sovereignty issues

The proposal, unusual in most free trade agreements, has raised concerns in New Delhi over limiting its ability to act unilaterally during crises

India, US complete 5th round of talks for trade pact: MoS Jitin Prasada

Negotiations for the proposed bilateral trade agreement between India and the US were launched in March 2025, and so far, five rounds of talks have been held, Parliament was informed on Tuesday. Similarly, twelve rounds of negotiations have been held so far between India and the European Union (EU) for the proposed free trade agreement. The last round was held from 7-11 July in Brussels. "India-US bilateral trade agreement negotiations were launched in March 2025. Five rounds of negotiations have been held, the last being from July 14-18, 2025, at Washington," Minister of State for Commerce and Industry Jitin Prasada said in a written reply to the Lok Sabha. Replying to a separate question, the minister informed that intellectual property (IP) filings in the last five years have increased by 44 per cent to 6,89,991 in 2024-25 from 4,77,533 in 2020-21. The highest growth was observed in Geographical Indications (GI) with a 380 per cent increase, followed by Designs (266 per cent),

Explained: What the India-UK free trade deal means for both economies

India and the UK are likely to sign a long-awaited free trade deal during PM Modi's visit to London on July 24, aiming to boost trade, cut tariffs, and deepen economic ties

India should negotiate trade deal with US on its own terms: EAC-PM chief

India should negotiate a trade agreement with the US on its own terms, keeping in view the national interest, Economic Advisory Council to the Prime Minister (EAC-PM) Chairman S Mahendra Dev has said. Dev expressed hope that India will have an advantage over other countries on tariffs once the Free Trade Agreements (FTAs) are signed, and it would boost exports. "The overall approach of India is negotiating trade agreements with countries on its own terms and keeping in view the national interests. The negotiations are going on and the ultimate decision depends on the mutual interests of both countries," he told PTI. US President Donald Trump has said the proposed trade deal with India would be on the lines of what America has finalised with Indonesia on Tuesday. Under the US-Indonesia trade pact, the Southeast Asian nation will provide complete access to its market to US products, while Indonesian goods would attract a 19 per cent duty in America. In addition, Indonesia has commit

PM Modi likely to visit UK this month; India-UK FTA signing on the cards

Prime Minister Narendra Modi is likely to travel to the United Kingdom by the end of this month for a visit that could see both sides formally ink the landmark India-UK free trade deal and explore ways to expand bilateral ties in defence and security sphere, diplomatic sources said on Tuesday. Both sides are in the process of finalising the dates for PM Modi's visit to the UK by the end of July or the first part of August, they said. Earlier, there were indications that British PM Keir Starmer will visit India first. It is learnt that the British prime minister may visit India later this year. India and the UK are expected to formally sign the free trade deal during PM Modi's visit to London, the sources said. In May, India and the UK sealed the free trade agreement that is expected to benefit 99 per cent of Indian exports from tariffs and will make it easier for British firms to export whisky, cars and other products to India, besides boosting the overall trade basket. Along with

No trade deal under pressure; India's interest first, says Goyal on US pact

India does not enter into any trade agreement based on deadlines and will accept the proposed trade deal with the US only when it is fully finalised, properly concluded and in the national interest, Commerce Minister Piyush Goyal said on Friday. He also said that India is negotiating free trade agreements (FTAs) with different countries, including European Union, New Zealand, Oman, the US, Chile, and Peru. FTAs are possible only when both sides get benefitted and it should be a win-win agreement, he told reporters when asked about the proposed interim trade agreement with the US. "National interest should always be supreme. Keeping that in mind, if a deal is made then India is always ready to deal with developed countries," Goyal said. When asked if an interim trade agreement between the two countries is possible by July 9, he said, "India never does any trade deal based on deadline or time frame. When the deal is done properly, and is completely finalised and is in the country's .

Govt working on a separate PLI for garments: Textile minister Giriraj Singh

The Indian textile industry, which was worth $112 billion a decade ago, has grown by nearly 60 per cent to $176 billion today and our target is to grow it to $350 billion by 2030, says Giriraj Singh

Jaishankar calls India's trade pacts with mature markets 'space to watch'

Jaishankar says India is now focusing on FTAs with mature, rule-bound markets like the UK, EU, and US, moving away from Southeast Asia to ensure balanced, transparent trade partnerships