Report on the signing of the New Delhi Free Trade Agreement

New Delhi is poised to sign free trade agreements (FTAs) with various countries in 2024, motivated by an interest in accessing India's "huge and fast-growing market", according to the Global Trade Research Initiative (GTRI).

The report, titled 'India's FTA Outlook 2024', reveals the motivation of these countries to sign a trade agreement with India due to the challenges posed by high import tariffs that prevent them from entering the Indian market.

“By signing a free trade agreement with India, they will be able to access significant trade in the Indian market without these tariffs, meaning their companies will have an advantage over other companies when it comes to selling products in the Indian market. said.

Trade deals are being negotiated between India and several major economies, including the UK, the US, the EU, Switzerland, Norway, and the Russian-led Eurasian Economic Union (EEU). The report predicts that India will "complete or near-complete" these agreements with all major economies except China by the end of this year.

GTRI noted that India currently has "comprehensive" free trade relations with 22 countries and has agreements in place with another 49 countries in progress. The report predicts that after the successful conclusion and implementation of these FTAs, India will have trade agreements with 71 countries, which will account for a significant portion of India's exports of $337 billion (74.7%).

However, the report rules out the possibility of any increase in Indian exports to these countries where FTAs ​​are currently being negotiated, as many of them already impose low import tariffs. He pointed out that India's path in the negotiations "requires strategic planning, adaptation and focus on improving the quality of Indian products for global markets while maintaining domestic interests".

According to a Business Today report last week, India is actively working to finalize a free trade agreement with the United Kingdom, Oman, and the European bloc comprising Iceland, Liechtenstein, Norway, and Switzerland before the upcoming general elections.

"Negotiations are in full swing to finalize the three agreements by the end of January or February at the latest," said an official familiar with the matter.

Difficulties arose during negotiations with the United Kingdom, mainly related to market access for spirits and automobiles. According to media reports, the 14th inter-Korean summit is scheduled to be held later this month. Last week, the Daily Express reported that Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi and British Chancellor Rishi Sunak were ready to finalize a deal by April.

In another situation, Canada's free trade agreement with India has been halted due to diplomatic tensions with Ottawa, which links Indian government agents to the killing of a Sikh activist near Vancouver. Meanwhile, New Delhi announced this month that it will resume negotiations with the Eurasian Economic Union, which includes Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Armenia, Belarus, and Russia, to increase India's market accessibility to Russia. Expand CIS countries.