New Delhi
India and the UK are working to bridge differences in order to finalize the proposed free trade agreement (FTA) quickly. Following a meeting between British Prime Minister Keir Starmer and Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi at the G20 Summit in Brazil, the UK announced that negotiations would resume in early 2025, an official statement said on Wednesday.
The FTA talks, which began in January 2022, had stalled during the election cycles in both countries. The 14th round of talks ended without significant progress, but both nations are now committed to addressing outstanding issues for a mutually beneficial agreement.
India’s Commerce Ministry welcomed the UK’s decision to restart the negotiations and emphasized the importance of a balanced deal. India hopes to address the remaining issues in goods and services sectors, which include access for skilled professionals in IT and healthcare to the UK market and duty-free access for certain goods.
On the UK side, there are demands for reduced import duties on items like scotch whiskey, electric vehicles, lamb, and chocolates, as well as more opportunities for UK services in sectors like telecommunications and financial services in India.
The two countries are also discussing a bilateral investment treaty. With 26 chapters covering goods, services, investments, and intellectual property, the FTA has the potential to boost trade between the nations.
India-UK bilateral trade grew to USD 21.34 billion in 2023-24, and India aims to increase exports to the UK to USD 30 billion by 2029-30 as part of its ambitious export targets.
