India News Network
The fifth round of FTA talks between India and the UK was held in July.
Negotiators from India and the United Kingdom are working towards wrapping up discussions on major issues for the proposed Free Trade Agreement (FTA) by the end of October in keeping with a Diwali deadline.
The two sides concluded the fifth round of talks for an India-UK Free Trade Agreement (FTA) on July 29.
India and UK officials will continue to work intensively throughout the summer towards the target to conclude the majority of talks on a comprehensive and balanced Free Trade Agreement by the end of October 2022, India's Ministry of Commerce and Industry said on Wednesday.
Technical experts from both sides came together for detailed draft treaty text discussions in 85 separate sessions covering 15 policy areas. These technical talks were held in a hybrid fashion – with some of the teams meeting in New Delhi, India, and the majority of officials joining virtually, the ministry said.
"A big thanks to @harjinderkangUK and teams @DoC_GoI @tradegovuk for phenomenal work done. As 2 weeks of R5 of India-UK FTA negotiations draw towards closure, Teams will continue to work intensively throughout summer towards our target to conclude the talks by Diwali", Joint Secretary in India's Department of Commerce Nidhi Mani Tripathi had tweeted on July 31.
The Prime Ministers of India and the UK launched the Enhanced Trade Partnership (ETP) on May 4, 2021, to unleash the trade potential of the partnership by doubling trade by 2030 and reducing market barriers to trade in key sectors. Following this, both sides launched negotiations for a Free Trade Agreement on January 13, 2022.
The UK ranked as India's 17th largest trading partner (2021–22). From April 2021 to February 2022, over $16 billion worth of goods and services were traded between the two countries. That’s why the FTA is important for both India and the UK since it will increase commerce in general. It is predicted that the deal would increase bilateral commerce between India and the UK to $100 billion by 2030.
