Page 10 - Fta

India, EU to hold next round of talks on proposed FTA from Mar 10

India and the European Union will hold the next round of talks on the proposed free trade agreement (FTA) from March 10 to 14, a senior government official said on Monday. Additional Secretary in the Department of Commerce L Satya Srinivas said that before the round the entire delegation of the European Commission will be in India from February 28. Days before the visit of the European Commission team, UK's Minister of State for Trade Policy Douglas Alexander will be in India for a meeting with Commerce and Industry Minister Piyush Goyal on February 24. On February 25th, officials of India and UK will restart talks on the free trade agreement. "We have taken stock of where we left in the last round (14th) and will take it forward during the visit," Satya Srinivas said. India and the UK have held 14 rounds of negotiations on the FTA since its launch in January 2022.

Best of BS Opinion: India must learn to negotiate its way across the world

With the world in rapid flux following the election of Donald Trump, India finds itself in uncharted waters, and needs to learn how to make deals that serve its interests to the fullest

India, Oman trade ministers discuss advancing FTA negotiations pact

Trade ministers of India and Oman on Monday reviewed progress of the proposed free trade agreement (FTA) between the two countries and focused on advancing the negotiations for the pact. The agreement was discussed between Commerce and Industry Minister Piyush Goyal and Oman's Minister of Commerce, Industry and Investment Promotion Qais bin Mohammed Al Yousef in Muscat. "Our talks focused on advancing negotiations on the Comprehensive Economic Partnership Agreement (CEPA), strengthening trade and investment ties, and exploring avenues to further deepen our bilateral partnership," Goyal said on X. Goyal is in Muscat for the Joint Commission Meeting, which will be held on January 28. On January 14, India and Oman held the fifth round of talks for the agreement, aiming to boost bilateral economic ties. The negotiations for the agreement, officially dubbed CEPA, formally began in November 2023. In such agreements, two trading partners either significantly reduce or eliminate customs

Piyush Goyal to visit Oman to push forward India-Oman FTA discussions

The formal commencement of the India-Oman FTA negotiations began in November 2023. The negotiations on the text of most chapters were concluded by India and Oman by January 2024

India-EU FTA negotiations a tough nut to crack as key issues unresolved

A major hurdles in the way of talks has been EU's stance on sustainable development, since trade bloc is set to implement regulations such as CBAM, deforestation regulation law, and supply chain law

India, UK looking to resume talks on FTA in Feb: Commerce ministry

India and the UK are exploring convenient dates to resume the talks for the proposed free trade agreement in early February, according to the commerce ministry. The talks for the proposed FTA began in January 2022. The 14th round of talks stalled as the two nations stepped into their general election cycles. "Mutually convenient date is being explored for the next round of negotiations for early February," the ministry informed on Wednesday. The bilateral trade between India and the UK increased to USD 21.34 billion in 2023-24 from USD 20.36 billion in 2022-23. Regarding a similar agreement with the European Union (EU), the ministry said that the tenth round of talks is scheduled from March 10-14 in Brussels. The two sides are negotiating a free trade agreement, an investment protection agreement and an agreement on geographical indications (GIs). In the ninth round, both sides discussed trade issues covering goods, services, investment and government procurement along with neces

FTA talks with India have been relaunched: UK govt tells Parliament

The UK government on Tuesday told Parliament that the Free Trade Agreement (FTA) talks with India have been relaunched to deliver a joint ambition of taking the bilateral relationship to even greater heights. During a debate on UK economic growth in the House of Commons, British Indian Labour MP Jeevun Sandher asked Foreign Secretary David Lammy about the steps being taken to get a good UK-India trade deal over the line. Describing 2025 as an exciting year for the UK's trading relationship with India, the co-chair of the India All Party Parliamentary Group (APPG) flagged the exchange of green technologies to help prevent and reduce the warming of our planet among the areas of focus. We are two nations with an intertwined history and common democratic ideals and we face the risks of a dangerous world and a warming planet, said Sandher, a first-time member of Parliament from Loughborough, in the East Midlands region of England. In response, Lammy pointed to his India visit within wee

India, Oman hold fifth round of talks for proposed free trade agreement

India and Oman are holding the fifth round of talks for a proposed free trade agreement here to boost bilateral economic ties, an official said on Tuesday. The two-day talks started on January 13, the official said. The negotiations for the agreement, officially dubbed as Comprehensive Economic Partnership Agreement (CEPA), formally began in November 2023. Oman is the third largest export destination among the Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) countries. According to the think tank GTRI (Global Trade Research Institute), Indian goods worth USD 3.7 billion like gasoline, iron and steel, electronics, and machinery will get a significant boost in Oman, once both sides reach a comprehensive free trade agreement. Currently, over 80 per cent of its goods enter Oman at an average of 5 per cent import duties, a GTRI report has said. Oman's import duty ranges from 0 to 100 per cent, along with the existence of specific duties. A duty of 100 per cent is applicable on specific meats, wines and

India raises barriers issue faced by domestic industry with European Union

India has flagged barriers being faced by domestic industry in the European Union (EU) markets and urged to address the issue, an official statement said on Friday. The issue besides the progress of proposed free trade agreement between the two was discussed during the meeting of Commerce and Industry Minister Piyush Goyal and European Commissioner for Trade and Economic Security Maros Sefcovic last night virtually. "Minister Goyal underlined that non-tariff barriers were impeding trade and emphasized the need to address long pending issues as a confidence building measure," the commerce ministry said. Both sides agreed to explore a balanced, equitable, ambitious and mutually beneficial FTA, it added. Following nine rounds of intensive negotiations, FTA (Free Trade Agreement) discussions require strategic political guidance to conclude a commercially significant and mutually beneficial agreement, with due consideration given to each side's sensitivities, the ministry said.

Rs 1.46 trn investment realised across 14 PLI sectors till Aug: Govt

The government on Tuesday said investment of Rs 1.46 lakh crore have been realised, resulting in incremental production and sales of over Rs 12.50 lakh crore across 14 PLI sectors till August this year. In a written reply to the Lok Sabha, Commerce and Industry Minister Piyush Goyal said that keeping in view India's vision of becoming self-reliant, Production Linked Incentive (PLI) Schemes for 14 key sectors have been announced with an outlay of Rs 1.97 lakh crore to enhance manufacturing capabilities and exports. "As on August 2024, across 14 sectors, investment of Rs 1.46 lakh crore have been realised, which has resulted in incremental production/sales of over Rs 12.50 lakh crore, employment generation of over 9.5 lakhs, and exports surpassing Rs 4 lakh crore," he added. Incentives of Rs 2,968 crore in eight sectors and Rs 6,753 crore in nine sectors during 2022-23 and 2023-24, respectively, have been disbursed. As of date, 764 applications have been approved under PLI schemes

Nearly a decade on, New Zealand keen to restart free-trade agreement talks

The two countries entered into FTA negotiations 14 years ago, but talks stalled after 10 rounds of discussions, and no formal round of negotiations has been held since February 2015

India not re-considering joining mega trade agreement RCEP, says Goyal

India in 2019 decided not to join the mega free trade agreement RCEP as the pact was not addressing its concerns and since then there has been no change in that position, Commerce and Industry Minister Piyush Goyal said on Friday. The RCEP (Regional Comprehensive Economic Partnership) agreement is being negotiated among 10 ASEAN members (Brunei, Cambodia, Indonesia, Laos, Malaysia, Myanmar, the Philippines, Singapore, Thailand, and Vietnam) and their six free-trade pact partners Australia, China, India, Japan, South Korea and New Zealand. In a written reply to the Rajya Sabha, Goyal said that the structure of RCEP did not adequately address the ambitions and concerns of India's stakeholders. Due to that, India decided not to join the bloc, in its current form. Accordingly, during the third RCEP Leaders Summit held on November 4, 2019, in Bangkok, India conveyed its position that current structure of RCEP did not address the outstanding issues and concerns of the country. "There ha

FTA talks with India to relaunch early 2025: UK PM Starmer tells Parliament

The Free Trade Agreement negotiations with India -- expected to significantly boost the estimated GBP 42-billion a year bilateral trade partnership -- will be relaunched early in the new year, Prime Minister Keir Starmer has informed the UK Parliament here. It came during his statement to update the House of Commons on Thursday about his G20 Summit visit to Brazil, where he said he had a good discussion with Prime Minister Narendra Modi among other world leaders. The meeting earlier this week had led to both countries agreeing to resume the election-stalled Free Trade Agreement (FTA) talks. I had a good discussion with Prime Minister Modi about deepening our bilateral ties, Starmer told the members of Parliament. We agreed to raise the ambition of our UK-India comprehensive strategic partnership, which covers security, defence, technology, climate, health and education, building on the unique bonds and cultural ties between our two countries. Crucially, this work will start with t

India, Australia firm up clean energy partnership; pushing mega trade pact

India and Australia sealed an ambitious renewable energy partnership and set their eyes on a comprehensive economic cooperation agreement as Prime Minister Narendra Modi and his Australian counterpart Anthony Albanese vowed to significantly ramp up overall bilateral ties. A raft of issues including ways to boost ties in areas of defence and security ties, mobility, science and technology and education figured prominently at the second India-Australia annual conclave held on the sidelines of the G20 summit late on Tuesday. The two leaders also looked forward to a long-term vision of defence and security collaboration to enhance collective strength, contribute to both countries' security, and make an important contribution to regional peace and security, according to a joint statement. The Renewable Energy Partnership (REP) would provide the framework for practical cooperation in priority areas such as solar energy, green hydrogen, energy storage, investments in related projects and .

India's FTAs not paused, all talks progressing as per schedule: Official

Negotiations for all the proposed free trade agreements, including those with the UK and European Union (EU), are progressing as per the schedule and the country's FTAs are not paused, a top government official has said. The official said that an impression is going around that FTAs are paused, which is not correct. "All our FTAs, whether it is with the EU or UK, all are progressing as per the schedule," the official said. In the coming weeks, a bilateral meeting is scheduled between the commerce secretary and the Director-General of the European Union to take stock of the negotiations for the proposed trade agreement with the European Union. They will also meet as part of the Trade and Technology Council (TTC). Besides the EU and the UK, India is negotiating these agreements with Australia, Peru, Sri Lanka, and Oman. In such pacts, two trading partners either significantly cut customs duties or remove the maximum number of goods traded between them. They also ease norms to promo

UK celebrates Diwali with hopes of a 'magic moment' for India FTA deal

The UK is very keen to clinch the Free Trade Agreement (FTA) with India and is building towards that magic moment, Britain's minister in charge of the Indo-Pacific said during a special Diwali reception in London. Catherine West, parliamentary under-secretary of state in the Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office (FCDO), referenced the previous Conservative government's Diwali 2022 deadline to complete the FTA negotiations as she reiterated the recently elected Labour government's commitment to get the deal done. The FTA negotiations, which were paused for general elections in both countries, are aimed at significantly enhancing the estimated GBP 38.1 billion a year bilateral trading partnership. As the new government, we're still extremely keen to be getting on with our trade deal, which was meant to be signed a couple of Diwalis ago. But we don't mind, what's a Diwali between friends, said West, addressing the FCDO's gathering of parliamentarians, community leaders and ...

India, EU FTA negotiation priority, both sides pushing for early deal: MEA

During their bilateral talks at the Laxmi Vilas Palace in Vadodara, PM Modi and Sanchez discussed a wide range of topics, including trade, defence, and technology collaboration

India-UK negotiations on free trade deal likely to restart in November

India expects the UK to come forward for the next round of negotiations, after the Budget presentation later this month

India, Maldives sign currency swap agreement, to initiate talks on FTA

Seeking to strengthen bilateral ties, India and the Maldives on Monday inked a currency swap agreement to the tune of USD 400 million, a move that would help the archipelago nation overcome foreign exchange reserve issues. Prime Minister Narendra Modi and visiting Maldivian President Mohamed Muizzu also launched Rupay card in the Maldives, inaugurated the new runway at the Hanimadhoo International airport and agreed to further strengthen bilateral relations that had hit a rocky patch last year. Muizzu, who is on a four-day state visit, held talks with Prime Minister Modi at the Hyderabad House here. After the talks, India also handed over 700 social housing units to the Maldives built under the EXIM Bank's buyer's credit facilities. "Today, we have inaugurated the redeveloped Hanimaadhoo Airport. Now, the Greater Male Connectivity Project will also be expedited. We will also support the development of a new commercial port in Thilafushi," Modi told reporters here with Muizzu by his

India will take a multi-pronged approach to boost exports: Piyush Goyal

Our national interest will always be paramount. We'll calibrate and balance our policies based on needs of the country, says Piyush Goyal