India’s FTA negotiations with the EU and New Zealand are in their final stages and are expected to conclude soon. Ongoing talks with Peru, Chile and ASEAN.
An Indian team is in the UK to discuss the Double Contribution Convention (DCC) agreement, he added.
“We hope to complete it soon so that both (DCC and FTA) can be launched together,” he told reporters.
India and the United Kingdom signed the trade agreement, but it has not been implemented as it requires the approval of the British Parliament.
On negotiations with the EU, Agrawal said the talks were in their final phase.
“But the last phase is always difficult,” he stressed.
He added that negotiations for a trade deal with New Zealand were also in their final stages.
“We hope that we will manage to conclude (the negotiations) as soon as possible,” Agrawal said, adding that the final phase may take a long time.
Additionally, the secretary said negotiations with two South American countries – Peru and Chile – were also progressing.
With Peru, “progress is there and we hope to see progress there,” he said, adding that negotiations with Chile are also moving at a good pace and the fourth round of negotiations is scheduled here in December.
On the review of the FTA with ASEAN, he said it was a difficult review, but “we are making progress.”
In December, a new round of negotiations is likely, “during which we could see more positive progress,” he said.
The 10 ASEAN countries are Brunei, Cambodia, Indonesia, Laos, Malaysia, Myanmar, the Philippines, Singapore, Thailand and Vietnam.
Revising the agreement has been a long-standing demand of Indian industry, and India looks forward to an improved pact, which will address the current asymmetries in bilateral trade and make trade more balanced and sustainable.
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