India, EU complete FTA negotiations, summit announcement today

The official-level negotiations for the much-awaited India-European Union trade deal, often referred to as the “mother of all deals” have been completed, and the formal announcement will be made by both sides on Tuesday (January 27).

"Official-level negotiations are being concluded, and both sides are all set to announce the successful conclusion of FTA talks on 27th January, Tuesday," the Commerce Secretary Rajesh Agrawal said on Monday.

‘Balanced, forward-looking’

Elaborating further, he stated that as far as the Indian perspective is concerned, the trade deal is balanced and forward-looking, which will help in better economic integration of India with the EU, adding that it will propel trade and investments in both economies.

"Negotiations have been successfully concluded. The deal has been finalised," Agrawal said. He further stated that legal scrubbing of the FTA text is underway, and the endeavour will be to complete the processes and sign the pact at an early date.

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The deal is expected to be signed this year, and it may come into effect early next year. Implementation of the deal takes time, as it requires approval from the EU Parliament. In India, it requires only the nod of the Union Cabinet.

The pact is finalised after 18 years of negotiations. The talks started in 2007. Commerce and Industry Minister Piyush Goyal has termed this free trade agreement (FTA) "the mother of all deals" the country has signed so far.

EU leaders to hold talks with PM Modi

The conclusion of talks for the agreement will be announced formally in the India-EU (European Union) Summit after Prime Minister Narendra Modi holds talks with European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen and President of the European Council Antonio Costa in New Delhi on Tuesday.

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The pact is likely to provide duty-free access to a number of Indian goods from labour-intensive sectors such as textiles, chemicals, gems and jewellery, electrical machinery, leather and footwear.

Aimed at mutual tariff reduction

The EU's tariffs on Indian goods are about 3.8 per cent, but labour-intensive sectors attract about 10 per cent import duty. India's weighted average duty on EU goods is about 9.3 per cent, with particularly high duties on automobiles, parts (35.5 per cent), plastics (10.4 per cent), and chemicals and pharmaceuticals (9.9 per cent).

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In an FTA, two sides reduce or eliminate import duties on over 90 per cent of goods traded between them. An FTA also liberalises norms to promote trade in services sectors such as telecommunications, transportation, accounting, and auditing. The NDA government has finalised seven trade pacts since 2014: Australia, the UK, Oman, New Zealand, the UAE, the EFTA bloc, and Mauritius.

This pact is important, as the US' imposition of high tariffs has disrupted global trade flows. India is facing steep 50 per cent tariffs. The FTA is expected to help Indian exporters diversify their shipments. It will also help reduce dependence on China.

The backdrop

Besides FTA, the two are also negotiating a pact in investment protection and Geographical Indications (GI). The India-EU FTA covers 24 chapters, including trade in goods, services and investment.

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India's bilateral trade in goods with the EU was USD 136.53 billion in 2024-25 (exports worth USD 75.85 billion and imports worth USD 60.68 billion), making the EU India's largest goods trading partner. The services trade in 2024 was USD 83.10 billion. India has a trade surplus of USD 15.17 billion in 2024-25.

The EU market accounts for about 17 per cent of India's total exports, and the bloc's exports to India constitute 9 per cent of its total overseas shipments.

(With agency inputs)