UK-India Business Council upbeat as FTA talks get underway

New Delhi:  The UK-India Business Council on Tuesday welcomed the restart of the Free Trade Agreement (FTA) negotiations during UK Business and Trade Secretary Jonathan Reynolds’ visit to India, which includes two days of meetings with Commerce and Industry Minister Piyush Goyal and his team.

India and the UK resumed the negotiations on Monday.

This is an important and positive development. It is worth noting that UK-India bilateral trade and investment are already growing. The total trade in goods and services grew by 10 per cent to reach 42 billion pounds in the four quarters to the end of Q2-2024. This level of trade has almost doubled from before the pandemic in 2019, when the UK-India trade was 24.1 billion pounds, according to a UK-India Business Council (UKIBC) statement.

The UK and India have concluded 13 rounds of the bilateral FTA negotiation, with the 14th round being paused due to the UK’s general elections in May 2024. Substantial progress has been made since negotiations were first launched in 2022. The UK and India are focused on substantially deepening bilateral trade and the investment tide, with clear political will to close a mutually beneficial win-win deal, the statement said.

UKIBC applauded the continued commitment visible from both sides reaffirming at the highest levels the priority status being accorded to this partnership.

Richard Heald, Chair, the UK-India Business Council, said, “The visit of Secretary of State Jonathan Reynolds reaffirms the UK government’s commitment to step up to a more ambitious and future-focused trade and investment relationship with India.”

He said that starting with last year’s announcement of the Technology Security Initiative between India and the UK, the partnership has developed further with a renewed focus on cooperation, collaboration and integration across AI, security, climate change, development, as well as research and innovation.

Heald said the success of the FTA will support further economic growth for the world’s 5th and 6th largest economies and it will catalyse collaboration in other areas, too.

“Importantly, it will underscore the fact that the UK and India are strategic partners. This is truly an exciting chapter of the UK-India partnership. As India charges ahead towards Viksit Bharat@2047, UKIBC and more broadly, British businesses recognise that a successful FTA is a critical milestone in a long-term journey and are keen to support India’s ambitions,” he added.

–IANS