Page 3 - Fta

India, Britain reaffirm FTA commitment at annual strategic dialogue

India and Britain on Friday reaffirmed their commitment to conclude a mutually beneficial free trade agreement (FTA) at the annual UK-India Strategic Dialogue in London. Foreign Secretary Vinay Kwatra, who is on a visit to the UK, held discussions with his counterpart, Sir Philip Barton, Permanent Under-Secretary at the Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office (FCDO). After their meeting, the FCDO said the two leaders reviewed the progress made on the UK-India 2030 Roadmap since the last strategic dialogue in January last year and looked ahead to the next phase of bilateral cooperation. The two reflected on good progress on the 2030 Roadmap since the last review, noting key areas where the UK and India have worked together to tackle some of the world's biggest challenges, the FCDO said in a statement. This included collaborating on the world's first malaria vaccine, working closely on India's successful G20 Presidency and increasing opportunities for students and entrepreneurs

Need our own JP Morgans and Citibanks: NITI chief BVR Subrahmanyam

Subrahmanyam calls for reforms in tariff policy, ease of procedures

India seeking fair market access ahead of the India-Asean FTA review

India aims to modernise and update the deal to align with current times, considering that the trade agreement was signed over a decade ago

India's imports from FTA partners in FY24 grew 38% over FY19

"This growth highlights the significant and varied impact of free trade agreements on India's global trade dynamics," GTRI said in a report

India's imports from FTA partners up 38% during 2019-24 fiscal years: GTRI

India's imports of goods from countries with which it has a free trade agreement like the UAE, South Korea, and Australia grew about 38 per cent during 2019-24 fiscal years to USD 187.92 billion, according to think tank GTRI. On the other hand, the country's exports to the FTA (free trade agreement) partners rose 14.48 per cent to USD 122.72 billion in 2023-24 from USD 107.20 billion in 2018-19. "From FY'2019 to FY'2024, India's imports increased by 37.97 per cent, from USD 136.20 billion to USD 187.92 billion. This growth highlights the significant and varied impact of free trade agreements on India's global trade dynamics," the Global Trade Research Initiative data showed. According to the data, India's exports to the UAE increased by 18.25 per cent to USD 35.63 billion in 2023-24 as against USD 30.13 billion in 2018-19, while imports surged 61.21 per cent, from USD 29.79 billion in FY2019 to USD 48.02 billion in the last fiscal. The FTA between India and the UAE came into effect

Decoded: How trade deals are ratified by India's partner countries

Trade experts said that Indian government officials generally reach out to their counterparts to discuss any major concern flagged by the trade partner's Parliament during FTA negotiations

India-EU FTA: Will the marriage reconcile?

While realpolitik is not expected to result in a favourable trade agreement between India and EU, the partners would do best in settling for a more realistic agenda with some compromise from both side

In the economic transformation of Southeast Asia, a tale of two FTAs

Advantages of India's FTA with ASEAN appear unclear and appear to make the country dependent on Chinese imports

Working towards ambitious deal with India, says UK as FTA talks resume

The UK government on Tuesday said that it continues to work towards striking an ambitious trade deal with India as a negotiating team from Delhi resumed talks with their British counterparts in London this week. The Department for Business and Trade (DBT) reiterated its stance of only signing a free trade agreement (FTA) that was in the best interests of the British people and economy. Last month, DBT officials had indicated that formal trade negotiations were being paused for the course of India's phased general election, though some talks were expected to carry on until the poll results are declared on June 4. On Tuesday, UK officials said discussions resume in London this week to "continue talks under Round 14" of the negotiations, which opened in January. The UK and India continue to work towards an ambitious trade deal that work for both countries, a DBT spokesperson said. While we do not comment on the details of negotiations, we are clear that we will only sign a deal that i

India, EEU bloc officials hold talks to formally start negotiation for FTA

Senior officials of India and the five-nation Eurasian Economic Union (EEU) bloc held detailed discussions last month to formally start negotiations for a free trade agreement to boost economic ties, an official said. The five members of the EEU are Armenia, Belarus, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan and Russia. The official said two feasibility studies have already been conducted on the proposed agreement. In such agreements, two or more trading partners either eliminate or significantly reduce customs duties on the maximum number of goods traded between them. These agreements provide greater market access to Indian goods and services. "Senior officers of both sides have met on March 28 here and have discussed formally starting talks for the FTA," the official said. An industry expert said domestic exporters from sectors like engineering goods, electronics and agriculture can get an edge from the agreement. Russia is the top trading partner of India in the bloc, with bilateral trade worth

India, UK aim to sign free-trade agreement by July; legal vetting on

The timeline for finalising the FTA continues to remain crucial even after the conclusion of the Lok Sabha elections in early June, since the UK will get close to its general election thereafter

FTA talks to continue even during polls: Commerce secy Sunil Barthwal

ECI is set to announce the schedule for the 2024 Lok Sabha election on Saturday

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