India and the UK are resuming negotiations on a free trade agreement (FTA), after almost a year’s hiatus and are setting a target of increasing bilateral trade to $40 billion from $20 billion at present, according to a statement issued by the Indian government on Tuesday, February 25.
The resumption of the FTA negotiations was announced in New Delhi jointly by India’s minister of commerce, Piyush Goyal, and UK secretary of state for business and trade, Jonathan Reynolds.
After a pause of almost a year, both sides have agreed to resume talks towards a balanced, mutually beneficial and a forward-looking deal that delivers mutual growth and builds on the strengths of the two complementary economies, the statement said.
On the deadline to conclude the negotiations, Goyal said it’s never “too early” or “too late” to conclude a good agreement as these pacts are for a long-term future.
Indian government sources said that India’s FTA talks with the UK and the EU are set to get a firm push with high-level visits lined up this week in New Delhi even as US President Donald Trump’s tariff threats have created uncertainty for the country’s economic ties with the US.
India and the EU are also expected to conduct bilateral ministerial meetings and engage in a trade and technology council, which was launched to resolve issues such as the contentious Carbon Border Adjustment Mechanism (CBAM).