New Zealand seeks trade with India outside FTA, milk: Damien O'Connor

'We are very big in wood logs, which is among the single biggest items of export to India'

A few years back, India and New Zealand were close to signing a free trade agreement (FTA) as part of negotiations under the Regional Comprehensive Economic Partnership (RCEP) before New Delhi walked out of the multilateral trade deal, citing domestic compulsions. Damien O’Connor, New Zealand’s minister for trade, export growth and agriculture tells Sanjeeb Mukherjee in an interview that dairy is his country’s biggest export item, but they are willing to explore possibilities. Edited excerpts:

Some years back there was talk of India-New Zealand FTA as part of the RCEP negotiations. Where does it stand now that India is no longer