India-EU trade negotiations: Commerce Minister Piyush Goyal to visit Brussels at the end of October

Commerce and Industry Minister Piyush Goyal will visit Brussels later this month to give impetus to the ongoing negotiations on a free trade agreement between India and the European Union, an official said on Saturday (October 18, 2025).

The minister will be in Europe to participate in the Berlin Global Dialogue, which will be held from October 23 to 25, the official said.

Next, trade negotiations with the EU will take place in Brussels. He will meet the European Commissioner for Trade, Maros Sefcovic.

Mr Goyal’s visit follows the conclusion of the 14th round of talks between the two sides from October 6-10.

Commerce Secretary Rajesh Agrawal also held discussions with European Commission (EC) Director-General for Trade (DG-Trade), Sabine Weyand, in Brussels.

Engagements between the two parties intensified as they decided to conclude negotiations by December.

After his Europe visit, Mr. Goyal will visit New Zealand. The two countries launched negotiations on a free trade agreement in March and have held three rounds of negotiations on it.

In June 2022, India and the European bloc resumed negotiations for a comprehensive FTA, an agreement on investment protection and a pact on geographical indications after a gap of more than eight years. It was blocked in 2013 due to differences in the level of market opening.

India’s bilateral merchandise trade with the EU stood at $136.53 billion in 2024-25 (exports worth $75.85 billion and imports worth $60.68 billion), making it the largest merchandise trading partner.

The EU market accounts for around 17% of India’s total exports, and the bloc’s exports to India constitute 9% of its total overseas shipments.