India and the EU are close to a complete free trade agreement (ALE), potentially finalized before the end of the year. Investment and GI pacts can follow separately.
However, the investment treaty offered and a pact on geographic indications (GI) may not be concluded simultaneously.
The official said that the situation remains dynamic in negotiations for free trade agreements.
Negotiations for the “full agreement” between India and the EU progress at a rapid rate, and the agreement could be concluded before the end of the year, added the official.
Earlier, there were discussions that an early harvest trade pact could be finalized before concluding a complete agreement.
In June 2022, India and the EU block of 27 countries resumed negotiations for a complete free trade agreement, an investment protection agreement and a PACT on the GIS after a gap of more than eight years.
A GI is mainly an agricultural, natural or manufactured product (crafts and industrial goods) from a defined geographical territory.
Negotiations stalled in 2013 due to differences on the market opening level.
On February 28, Prime Minister Narendra Modi and the president of the European Commission agreed to seal the long-awaited free trade agreement by the end of this year.
Negotiations of the India-EU commercial commercial cover cover 23 political areas or chapters, in particular trade in goods, trade in services, investment, health and phytosanitary measures, technical obstacles to trade, commercial appeals, rules of origin, customs and trade facilitation, competition, commercial defense, the purchase of government, settlement of disputes, intellectual property rights, sustainable development.
The bilateral trade of India with the goods with the EU was 137.41 billion USD in 2023-24 (exports worth 75.92 billion USD and imports worth 61.48 billion USD), which makes them the largest trading partner for goods.
The EU market represents approximately 17% of the total exports of India, while EU exports to India represent 9% of its total shipments abroad.
In addition, the bilateral trade in services, in 2023, between India and the EU was estimated at 51.45 billion USD.
Addressing journalists here, the French Minister of Foreign Trade, Laurent Saint-Martin, said that the agreement can be concluded in the coming weeks or months.
“I am quite optimistic about the fact that we can have an agreement in the coming weeks, of the coming months, because we must present to the world that we believe in trade, in the freer trade, and not in a trade war. This is what we agreed with the Minister,” said the French minister after a bilateral meeting with Goyal.
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