Page 13 - Fta

PM Modi talks with UK counterpart Sunak to review progress of FTA

Prime Minister Narendra Modi spoke to his British counterpart Rishi Sunak on Tuesday as they welcomed the progress made in the ongoing discussion between the two countries for an early conclusion of a free trade agreement (FTA). During their telephonic conversation, they reaffirmed their commitment to strengthening the bilateral comprehensive strategic partnership, a statement said. In a post on X, Modi said, "Had a good conversation with PM @RishiSunak. We reaffirmed our commitment to further strengthen the bilateral Comprehensive Strategic Partnership and work for early conclusion of a mutually beneficial Free Trade Agreement." The statement said the two leaders expressed satisfaction over the progress made under the "Roadmap 2030" in diverse areas including trade, investment, defence, security, emerging technologies and others. "They assessed positively the progress made towards early conclusion of a mutually beneficial Free Trade Agreement," it said. The two leaders also excha

16 years, 21 rounds of talks: India-EFTA free trade agreement a reality

For promised FDI, India's nominal GDP must grow 9.5% in $ terms over 15 yrs

UK team heads back to London with Round 14 of FTA talks still open

Sources said the UK is "proud" of all that has been achieved so far and that the Prime Minister Rishi Sunak-led government remains committed to securing a "comprehensive and ambitious" FTA and BIT

Modi govt always keeps in mind long-term benefits of FTAs for India: Goyal

Commerce and Industry Minister Piyush Goyal on Friday said that the Modi government always keeps in mind commensurate and long-term benefits for the domestic industry while negotiating free trade agreements. He stressed that "gone" are the days when India used to accept the terms of the world. "We crystal gaze into the future to make sure that its (FTAs) impact in the future will also be positive and we also look at balanced, fair and equitable FTAs," he told PTI in an interview. "So we can see the big Indian opportunity that we are offering and we want to make sure that we get commensurate benefits (from these pacts) for the country," he said. He indicated "some good news" on this front in the days to come. The remarks assume significance as India and the European Free Trade Association (EFTA) bloc concluded the talks for an FTA. EFTA members are Iceland, Liechtenstein, Norway, and Switzerland. The minister said that the free trade pacts of the Modi government involve a huge am

India's free trade agreement with EFTA likely to be signed on March 10

The Union Cabinet on Thursday discussed the proposed free trade agreement between India and four European nation bloc EFTA and the pact is likely to be inked on Sunday, said sources. The negotiations for the pact with the European Free Trade Association (EFTA) members -- Iceland, Liechtenstein, Norway, and Switzerland -- have concluded. The pact is expected to be signed on Sunday here, sources added. India and EFTA have been negotiating the pact, officially dubbed as Trade and Economic Partnership Agreement (TEPA), since January 2008 to boost economic ties. The agreement has several chapters including trade in goods, rules of origin, intellectual property rights (IPRs), trade in services, investment promotion and cooperation, trade and sustainable development, and trade facilitation. EFTA has 29 free trade agreements (FTAs) with 40 partner countries, including Canada, Chile, China, Mexico, and Korea. Under free trade pacts, two trading partners significantly reduce or eliminate .

UK trade minister Badenoch doesn't see Indian election as deadline for FTA

Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi is seeking to win a third term, with the official election campaign expected to begin in the coming weeks

Talks on upgrading India-S Korea FTA may conclude in 2024: Korean envoy

South Korea is hoping that the negotiations will conclude before the possible visit of Yoon Suk Yeol, the South Korean President, to India

India-Oman FTA may be reality soon; legal vetting of deal's text underway

India is keen to finalise the trade pact before the model code of conduct (MCC) kicks-in ahead of its general elections, making the timing of the finalisation of the proposed deal crucial

After PMO review, India makes likely final push for UK free trade agreement

If negotiations are not wrapped up at the earliest, discussions will have to be taken forward after India's election, depending on the priority of the new government

8 sub-committees reviewing free trade agreement between India, Asean

Eight sub-committees have been constituted under the India-Asean free trade agreement joint committee for undertaking negotiations on different areas related to the review of the pact, an official statement said on Monday. India hosted the third meeting of the committee for undertaking the review here from February 16-19. The AITIGA (Asean-India trade in goods agreement) was signed in 2009. In September 2022, both sides tasked the AITIGA Joint Committee to undertake the review to make the agreement more trade facilitative and mutually beneficial. "A total of eight sub-committees have been constituted under the AITIGA Joint Committee for undertaking negotiations on different policy areas related to the agreement," the commerce ministry said. The first two meetings of the joint committee were held in May and August last year. In the meeting, the ministry said, the sub-committees reported the progress and outcome of their discussions related to market access, rules of origin and ...

India, UK trade pact talks at advance stage; we want a fair deal: Govt

The negotiations for the proposed India-UK free trade agreement are at an advanced stage, and both sides are working to iron out differences on the remaining issues, a top government official said on Thursday. Commerce Secretary Sunil Barthwal said the negotiations are taking time because "we want" to safeguard India's interest. "India should commercially gain out of it and we should also be able to safeguard the interest of our farmers, PLI (production linked incentive) scheme goods. So, we are there to see that the deal is a fair deal," he told reporters here. Additional Secretary in the Commerce Ministry L Satya Srinivas said the talks are at an advanced stage and going on at a "very" high level to iron out differences. The 14th round of talks started on January 10. The investment treaty is being negotiated as a separate agreement between India and the UK. The bilateral trade between India and the UK increased to USD 20.36 billion in 2022-23 from USD 17.5 billion in 2021-22.

Govt rejects EU FTA's data exclusivity demand to protect drug cos' interest

India on Thursday said it has rejected the demand of the four European nations EFTA bloc for inclusion of a 'data exclusivity' provision in proposed free trade agreements, stating that it always protects the interests of the domestic generic drugs industry. Commerce Secretary Sunil Barthwal said there is no Free Trade Agreement (FTA) in which India will go against the generic drug industry. The European Free Trade Association (EFTA) members are Iceland, Liechtenstein, Norway, and Switzerland. The bloc is negotiating a trade agreement with India. "They want that there should be data exclusivity, we rejected their demand. We are with our generic industry. "There is no fear for Indian generic industry (from this agreement). In fact, it is our very important objective to see that generic drug industry flourishes," he told reporters here. The secretary said the industry is contributing significantly to India's exports, which are also growing. "So we are there to protect the interest o

Free trade agreement with India by year-end: Sri Lankan foreign minister

Sri Lanka on Tuesday said it has plans to establish a free trade agreement with India by the end of 2024, Foreign Minister Ali Sabry said here as the cash-strapped island nation tries to spur economic growth. Similar Free Trade Agreements (FTAs) would be worked out for Indonesia, Malaysia, Vietnam, and China too by the year's end, Sabry told reporters here. These agreements will open up new markets for the cash-strapped Sri Lankan businesses, contributing directly to the nation's economic growth. The government continues to struggle to restructure its external debt on the one hand and has raised utility rates and taxes on the other. Sri Lanka and India resumed talks on the Economic and Technology Cooperation Agreement in Colombo at the 12th round in October last year. The original talks were stalled after several rounds of talks between 2016 and 2018 due to political and trade union opposition. Last week, Sri Lanka inked an FTA with Thailand. This has already provided Sri Lanka acc

Best of BS Opinion: Bilateral agreements, Dealing with Uncle Sam & more

Here is the best of Business Standard's opinion pieces for today

China threat an opportunity for India-US ties, strong FTA: Congressman Issa

The "threat" posed by China offers an opportunity for the US and India to make strong agreements, including a genuine Free Trade Agreement (FTA) to ensure that the two countries will look at each other as first partners, according to Darrell Issa, an influential American lawmaker. Issa, a Republican Congressman from California, said this during a conversation with Aparna Pande, Research Fellow, India, and South Asia with the think tank Hudson Institute here on Monday. Agreeing that the India-US relationship today does seem to be based in no small part on the China threat, he said, Having said that, I view this China threat as an opportunity to do with that we did not do. The items produced in China could be produced in India, at substantially similar costs (and) would more than allow for India to substantially replace its dirty fuel with clean fuel, Issa said. But that requires that the two countries really make strong agreements, including a genuine Free Trade Agreement (FTA), one

Commerce department mulls strategy to help industry leverage FTAs better

The government also plans to set up a digital architecture to help the industry overcome the challenges that are specific to FTAs

Switzerland and India reach deal on FTA after 16 years of negotiations

The agreement "will create jobs for the young population of India, and secure employment in Switzerland," Parmelin said in an interview with the Swiss newspaper Sonntagszeitung

India negotiating with UK to avoid double contribution to social security

India is working on a treaty with the UK under the proposed Free Trade Agreement (FTA) to avoid double contribution to social security funds by Indian professionals working for limited time period in Britain, an official said on Thursday. Indian professionals working for a limited period in Britain contribute to their social security funds but not able to get its benefit as they return once the projects are complete. "We are negotiating the double contribution treaty with the UK under the FTA. There should not be any double contribution towards social security schemes," the official said. It is a long-standing demand of Indian businesses operating in Britain to cut down on the additional cost burden associated with bringing in skilled Indian professionals on a short-term basis. The compulsory National Insurance (NI) contributions of skilled Indian professionals in the UK on temporary visas remains an additional cost burden of about GBP 500 per employee a year, over and above all .

Call of duty: Maruti Suzuki chairman advocates for low car tariffs in FTAs

The govt and Maruti believe the Indian car industry is no longer an infant and can face low-duty imports through FTAs, but not everyone is sure

No reason for high tariffs on cars from UK, EU: Maruti Suzuki's RC Bhargava

Maruti Suzuki chief says costs of many models 20-30% lower in India