New Delhi: Prime Minister Narendra Modi and his UK counterpart Sir Keir Starmer announced the successful conclusion of a mutually beneficial India-UK free trade agreement (FTA).
The deal was sealed after PM Modi spoke to PM Starmer over the phone. Apart from the FTA, a Double Contribution Convention has also been signed to take care of the interests of Indian workers in the UK.
"These landmark agreements will further deepen our Comprehensive Strategic Partnership, and catalyse trade, investment, growth, job creation, and innovation in both our economies. I look forward to welcoming PM Starmer to India soon," PM Modi said on X.
Under the free trade agreement, 99 per cent of Indian exports to the UK will get the benefit of zero duty, according to an official statement.
The agreement opens up massive export opportunities for labour-intensive sectors such as textiles, marine products, leather, footwear, sports goods and toys, gems and jewellery, and other important sectors such as engineering goods, auto parts and engines, and organic chemicals, the statement said.
There will also be a significant boost to trade in services, such as IT/ITeS, financial services, professional services, other business services and educational services.
In an unprecedented achievement, India has secured an exemption for Indian workers who are temporarily in the UK and their employers from paying social security contributions in the UK for a period of three years under the Double Contribution Convention. This will make Indian service providers significantly more competitive in the UK, the statement explained.
This will ensure stronger strategic alignment and greater global mobility for aspirational young Indians, it added.
This forward-looking Agreement is aligned with India’s vision of Viksit Bharat 2047 and complements the growth aspirations of both the countries, the statement said.
The FTA eases mobility for professionals, including contractual service suppliers, business visitors, investors, intra-corporate transferees, partners and dependent children of intra-corporate transferees with the right to work, and independent professionals like yoga instructors, musicians, and chefs.
The FTA seeks to promote good regulatory practices and enhance transparency that are in sync with India’s own focus on domestic reforms to enhance the ease of doing business.
India-UK FTA ushers a new era in trade: SitharamanNew Delhi: The India-UK free trade agreement (FTA) ushers a new era in trade between the two countries, Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman has said. In a post on X social media platform, FM Sitharaman said that under PM Modi’s leadership, India will be an engine of growth. “This agreement will mean greater market access to Indian exporters. Industries and innovation can flourish,” the Finance Minister added. "Signing bilateral agreements is the order of the day today. Multilateral agreements were in currency for sometime but today seems to be the time for countries to chalk their own bilateral arrangements," she mentioned during a plenary session of the 'NEXT Milan Forum' at Bocconi University in Milan, Italy. The FTA takes place in the backdrop of growing economic relations between India and the UK as exemplified in the bilateral trade of about $60 billion which is projected to double by 2030. This comprehensive and forward-looking agreement is the culmination of intense negotiations aimed at deepening trade and investment ties across a range of sectors, including goods, services and technology. |
