UK, India jointly launch trade negotiations

The Republic of India and United Kingdom have formally launched negotiations for a Free Trade Agreement between the two countries.

This announcement has been made by Indian Minister for Commerce and Industry Piyush Goyal and UK Trade Secretary, Anne-Marie Trevelyan, who is in New Delhi for Free Trade Agreement discussions. An India-UK Free Trade Agreement would be a substantial opportunity for their economies and a significant moment in the India-UK bilateral relationship.

The India-UK bilateral trading relationship is already significant, and both sides have agreed to double that bilateral trade by 2030, as part of Roadmap 2030 announced by the Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Prime Minister Boris Johnson in May 2021. India and the UK will seek to agree a mutually beneficial agreement supporting jobs, businesses and communities in both countries.

Both parties have agreed that the first round of negotiations will begin on January 17, and future rounds of negotiations will take place approximately every five weeks. The Indian negotiating team will be led by Ms Nidhi Mani Tripathi, Joint Secretary, Department of Commerce and the UK negotiating team will be led by Harjinder Kang, Director for India Negotiations at the Department for International Trade.

The ambition of both countries is to negotiate a broad agreement that will deliver for businesses and consumers.