UK India Business Council Welcomes Restart of UK-India Free Trade Agreement Talks between UK and India
By Trisha Nagpal
New Delhi, February 25, 2024: The UK India Business Council welcomes the restart of the UK-India Free Trade Agreement (FTA) negotiations during the UK’s Business and Trade Secretary the RT Hon Jonathan Reynolds MP visit to India, which includes 2 days of meetings with India’s Commerce & Industry Minister Shri Piyush Goyal and his team. In an official statement, Secretary of State Reynolds said, “Securing a trade deal with what is soon-to-be the third biggest economy in the world is a no-brainer, and a top priority for me and this Government. That is why I’m in New Delhi with our top negotiating team to show our commitment to getting these talks back on track. ”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 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.
The UK and India have concluded thirteen rounds of the bilateral FTA negotiation, with the 14th round being paused due to the UK’s general elections in May 2024. We understand substantial progress has been made since negotiations were first launched in 2022. The UK and India are focused at substantially deepening our bilateral trade and investment tide, with clear political will to close a mutually beneficial win-win deal.
We welcome and applaud the continued commitment visible from both sides reaffirming at the highest levels the priority status being accorded to this partnership.
Richard Heald OBE, Chair, UK-India Business Council, said, “Secretary of State Jonathan Reynolds’ visit reaffirms the UK government’s commitment to step-up to a more ambitious and future focused trade & investment relationship with India.
Starting with last years’ announcement of the Technology Security Initiative between India and the UK, the partnership has developed further with renewed focus on co-operation, collaboration and integration across AI, security, climate change, development, research & innovation and more.
And we are delighted to note the progress on the UK-India Free Trade Agreement negotiations. Success in the FTA will support further economic growth for the world’s 5th and 6th largest economies. It will catalyse collaboration into 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 longer term journey and are keen to support India’s ambitions”
About the UKIBC
UKIBC is a policy advocacy and strategic consulting not-for-profit, with a mission to grow the UK-India trade and investment. To do that, we provide strategic and practical support to businesses and universities to explore, enter, and expand in both markets.
We want to help more UK businesses to uncover opportunities and succeed in India.
Business looking at the India opportunity need to develop a strategy based on factual market insights, and then implement that strategy. The UK India Business Council has the knowledge, networks, and people to help do this.
UK-India collaboration creates prosperity and jobs in both countries, and UK and Indian business have ideas, technology, services and products which improve lives. We work closely with the UK and Indian governments, the devolved administrations, England’s city regions, and State governments across India. We believe a strong UK-India economic partnership is a force for positive change globally.
For more information, please contact:
Nishtha Grover
Senior Manager – Communications, UK India Business Council
Mobile – +91 9818021223
Email- Nishtha.grover@ukibc.com
