India, UK officials to start 13th round of FTA talks from September 4

Senior officials of India and the UK will start the 13th round of negotiations for the proposed free trade agreement from September 4, an official said on Thursday.

The two sides concluded the 12th round of negotiations on August 31.

Commerce and Industry Minister Piyush Goyal has recently stated that the negotiations between India and the UK for the proposed agreement are progressing and both countries are committed to concluding the talks as early as possible.

UK Business and Trade Secretary Kemi Badenoch was here recently to review the progress of talks. She also held bilateral meetings with Goyal and Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman.

Before the 12th round, the sides had concluded talks on 19 of the total 26 chapters in the FTA.

Investment is being negotiated as a separate agreement (bilateral investment treaty) between India and the UK.

The bilateral trade between countries increased to USD 20.36 billion in 2022-23 from USD 17.5 billion in 2021-22.