India-eu Fta Pact

The new bilateral age: EU FTA urgency key to shaping the new trade order

The World Trade Organization (WTO) seemed unable to rein in China's hidden subsidies to its exporting sectors, and to restore a level playing field for global trade

India, EU discuss efforts to accelerate balanced, mutually beneficial FTA

With India and the EU setting the year-end deadline to conclude a free trade agreement, teams from both sides held discussions on Saturday to accelerate efforts towards a balanced and mutually beneficial pact. The meeting was held between Commerce and Industry Minister Piyush Goyal and EU Commissioner for Trade and Economic Security Maros Sefcovic in Mumbai along with officials from both sides. "Our discussions focused on accelerating efforts towards a balanced and mutually beneficial free trade agreement. Looking forward to deepening economic ties and fostering a prosperous India-EU partnership," Goyal said in a post on X. On February 28, Prime Minister Narendra Modi and European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen agreed to seal a much-awaited free trade deal by this year amid rising concerns over US President Donald Trump's policy on tariffs. The two sides are scheduled to hold the tenth round of negotiations for the FTA from March 10-14 in Brussels. Further strengthening

India, EU looking to seal FTA deal this year: EC Prez Von der Leyen

A free trade agreement between the EU and India would be the largest deal of its kind anywhere in the world and both sides are looking at firming it up by this year, European Commission president Ursula von der Leyen said on Friday. In an address at a think-tank, the top leader of the 27-nation bloc also said that the EU is exploring a future security and defence pact with India in line with its partnerships with Japan and South Korea. Von der Leyen's comments came ahead of her wide-ranging talks with Prime Minister Narendra Modi. "This world is fraught with danger. But I believe this modern version of great power competition is an opportunity for Europe and India to reimagine their partnership," she said. "In many ways, the EU and India are uniquely placed to respond to this challenge together," she added. Von der Leyen said it is time to take the EU-India strategic partnership to next level. "This is not a time to place limits on our cooperation. Or to get stuck looking for ...

India should push for provisions in FTA to address EU's carbon tax: GTRI

India should push for inclusion of protective provisions in its proposed free trade agreement (FTA) with the European Union to safeguard its interests against the EU's carbon tax, think tank GTRI said on Thursday. The EU has decided to impose Carbon Border Adjustment Mechanism (CBAM), or carbon tax, which will come into effect from January 1, 2026. It would mainly impact seven carbon-intensive sectors, including steel, cement, fertiliser, aluminium and hydrocarbon products. The Global Trade Research Initiative (GTRI) said that if protective language is not included in the agreement, post FTA, EU goods will enter India duty-free, while Indian steel and aluminum could face high carbon charges under CBAM when exported to the EU. "Since CBAM imposes tariffs based on production methods, it violates WTO (World Trade Organisation) rules. India must push for protective language in the FTA to address this issue," GTRI Founder Ajay Srivastava said. The suggestions came at a time when Europea

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

Retaliatory tariff on European Union: India to firewall local biz

The government's policy decision aims to avoid hurting the local industry by imposing higher import duty on key raw materials or intermediate goods from the trade bloc

India, EU to begin next round of talks on free trade pact on Monday

Senior officials of India and the 27-nation European Union (EU) will commence the next round of talks for a proposed free trade agreement from Monday here, an official said. The agreement is aimed at further boosting bilateral trade and investments between the two regions. The two sides are negotiating a free trade agreement, an investment protection agreement and an agreement on geographical indications (GIs). "The five-day talks will start from September 23. It will be the ninth round of negotiations. Also, the concerns of Indian stakeholders regarding the EU's sustainability measures, such as CBAM, deforestation and others, will be discussed with the EU," the official said. During the ninth round, both sides will discuss core trade issues covering goods, services, investment and government procurement along with necessary rules such as rules of origin, SPS (sanitary and phytosanitary), and technical barriers to trade. The Carbon Border Adjustment Mechanism (CBAM) or carbon tax (

Round 14 of India-UK FTA talks put on hold ahead of election schedule

The 14th round of the free trade agreement (FTA) negotiations between India and the UK has now closed, with formal negotiations being put on hold as India heads into election campaign mode as the general election schedule is announced on Saturday. According to UK officials familiar with the discussions, a lot of progress has been made but the teams are not in a position to conclude an agreement which led to the Round 14 closing on Friday. The next round of formal trade talks can commence only after the Lok Sabha polls have concluded. The India-UK FTA negotiations, which opened in January 2022, are aimed at securing an ambitious outcome for bilateral trade currently worth around GBP 38.1 billion a year as per official statistics from last month. We anticipate that while some talks might happen between rounds, the next round of negotiations will take place after the Indian elections, official sources in the UK said. Neither side is walking away from talks. It's just that we don't h

Lok Sabha polls nearing, PMO reviews UK free trade agreement progress

Officials say 'political call' now needed to fructify proposed deal

FTA with Britain, EU will be a game changer for domestic industry: AEPC

The proposed free trade agreement with the UK and the European Union will be a game changer for the domestic industry and will offer a huge advantage for apparel exporters, AEPC said on Saturday. Apparel Export Promotion Council (AEPC) Chairman Naren Goenka said that trade pacts with the UAE, Australia and Japan are providing market access for the sector. "The FTA with the UK will be a game changer for the industry, and the EU will offer a big advantage if we sign an FTA deal," he said. The negotiations for the trade agreement with the UK are in the last stage and talks with the EU are moving at a faster pace. He also said that one of the major issues regarding the poor export competitiveness of Indian apparel is poor economies of scale. The apparel industry comprises 80 per cent of exporters with around Rs 10 crore turnover and the average number of machines in Indian apparel manufacturing units is 250-400, whereas competing countries have an average of 800- 1000 machines. "Also

UK officials pressured to drop IP law demands in India trade talks

Critics say the changes would damage India's position as a leading provider of generic drugs - essentially "copycat" versions of those which fall out of patent

India, UK trade ministers review progress of talks on proposed FTA

India and the UK on Saturday reviewed the progress of negotiations of the proposed free trade agreement (FTA), talks for which have reached the final stage. The progress was reviewed by Commerce and Industry Minister Piyush Goyal and UK Secretary of State for Business and Trade Kemi Badenoch in Osaka, Japan. Both ministers are in Japan for the Group of Seven (G7) trade ministers meeting in Osaka. Discussed the progress of India-UK free trade agreement negotiations with UK Secretary of State for Business and Trade Kemi Badenoch, Goyal said on social media platform X. Negotiations between senior officials of India and the UK are on to bridge differences on issues such as rules of origin and services sector, with an aim to conclude the talks for the proposed FTA at the earliest. India and Britain launched the talks for a trade agreement in January 2022, with an aim to conclude them by Diwali last year (October 24, 2022), but the deadline was missed due to political developments in th

FTA talks 'laser-focussed': UK officials as trade minister heads to India

India and the UK have made good progress in closing chapters and the free trade agreement (FTA) negotiations are now laser-focussed on goods, services and investment, UK officials said on Wednesday ahead of Business and Trade Secretary Kemi Badenoch's visit to India to attend the G20 summit. After the G20 Trade and Investment Ministerial Meeting in Jaipur, which is scheduled for Thursday and Friday, Badenoch is expected to head to New Delhi for bilateral talks with her Indian counterpart, Commerce and Industry Minister Piyush Goyal. Their discussions will coincide with the ongoing twelfth round of FTA negotiations that are underway in Delhi since last week. The UK and India are committed to working towards the best deal possible for both sides. We've made good progress in closing chapters, and are now laser-focused on goods, services, and investment, said a UK Department for Business and Trade (DBT) spokesperson. While we cannot comment on ongoing negotiations, we are clear that we

Govt likely to slash duty on UK cars, scotch whisky under trade pact

Striking a trade accord is critical for India's ambition to become a manufacturing powerhouse, while the UK is seeking to clinch new deals to highlight the benefits of Brexit

UK-India FTA to provide fair level playing field: Chivas Brothers

Chivas Brothers, a leading manufacturer of Scotch whiskey, expects the proposed free trade agreement between the UK and India would provide a "fair level playing field" on customs duties for liquor companies, its Chairman and CEO Jean Etienne Gourgues said. He also said that the proposed agreement may also help increase investments and promote domestic manufacturing of premium liquor in India. The two countries have been negotiating a free trade agreement (FTA) since January 2021 and senior officials of both sides concluded the 11th round of negotiations. Currently, Scotch whiskey, imported from the UK - both in bottled and bulk - is taxed at around 150 per cent in India, however, if the pact between the two governments is signed, then it would provide liberalisation in tariff and will be a 'win-win' for both India and the UK, he added. Our expectation is a fair level playing field between India and the UK. When we export scotch whisky to India, we pay a very high tax of over 150

India, UK working to iron out issues on IPRs, rules of origin under FTA

India and the UK are working to iron out differences on issues like intellectual property rights (IPRs) and rules of origin under the free trade agreement being negotiated by the two countries, a top government official said on Friday. The 11th round of talks is underway in the UK for the agreement. Negotiations for the trade agreement started in January 2021. Commerce Secretary Sunil Barthwal said that out of 26 chapters in the agreement, 14 have been closed. In five chapters there are certain important contentious issues pertaining to environment, labour, and digital trade. This agreement is the "most complex" one which will be going to be signed by India, he told reporters here. "UK will be the first with which we are going to have a comprehensive FTA which we have not signed with any other developed country as such," he added. There are some differences with respect to IPR and rules of origin (ROO). "In services also, there are few issues...So we are working on those issues.

UK trade minister in India to kickstart sixth round of FTA talks

UK Trade Secretary Kemi Badenoch arrives in New Delhi on Monday to kickstart the sixth round of free trade agreement (FTA) negotiations and hold bilateral talks with her Indian counterpart Piyush Goyal. The new round marks the first formal meeting between the India-UK negotiating teams since July and the first since Rishi Sunak took charge as British Prime Minister. His Trade Secretary will address both teams of senior negotiators ahead of the sixth round of formal negotiations, scheduled to take place throughout the week. I'm here in New Delhi to kickstart round six of UK-India trade negotiations and meet my counterpart (Commerce and Industry) Minister Goyal in person to drive progress on this agreement, said Badenoch. Both nations have come to the table with the very highest of ambitions and a willingness to work together towards a mutually beneficial deal. I'm excited about the opportunities we can create for British business, she said. India and the UK are the 5th and 6th bigg

India, UK decide to push for sealing ambitious FTA by the end of this year

PM Modi and UK PM Boris Johnson on Friday pushed for closing the negotiations for a free trade agreement by the end of the year, and agreed on a expanded bilateral defence and security partnership.

FTAs with key nations will boost exports, attract more investments: FIEO

India likely to kick start talks for FTAs with UK and EU by 2021-end, is also focusing on resuming trade talks with Canada, Australia

India, EU decide to resume negotiations on Free Trade Agreement after 8 yrs

India and the European Union (EU) on Saturday announced their decision to resume negotiations for a balanced and comprehensive trade agreement after a gap of eight years