India and the UK are likely to hold the next round of negotiations on the proposed free trade agreement in the third week of January in New Delhi, a government official said. Following a bilateral meeting with Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Tuesday, his UK counterpart Keir Starmer had announced that the two nations would resume negotiations on the pact early next year.
“The Indian side will push to resume by the third week (of January) or sooner,” the official told Informist. The aim was to resume this year itself after the elections, but it got delayed due to the festival and holiday season, the official added. The month of October had several Jewish holidays, such as Rosh Hashanah and Yom Kippur, November had Diwali, and the year set to end with Christmas and New Year.
“We want to hold the next round (of talks) here in Delhi. Last time, we he had gone for it,” the official said. Both the sides had held the last round of negotiations in April in the UK before the two countries stepped into their respective election cycles.
On Wednesday, the commerce ministry had said that trade officials would soon finalise the date for the next round of negotiations and resume discussions from the progress achieved previously. India and the UK had initiated negotiations for the agreement in January 2022 when Boris Johnson was the Prime Minister.
A deadline of October 2022 was set initially, to coincide with Diwali, but political developments in the UK delayed the conclusion of the talks. Chapter-wise textual negotiations are nearly closed, and goods and services are at an advanced stage of negotiations, as per the commerce ministry.
Under the agreement, Indian companies are hopeful of getting market access for several goods at no customs duty in the UK. They are also seeking better access for Indian professionals in the UK’s healthcare and information technology sectors. On other hand, the UK has demanded a cut in import duties on scotch whisky, electric vehicles, chocolates, and lamb meat.
The UK was India’s 16th largest trade partner in 2023-24 (Apr-Mar). Bilateral trade between the two countries last year amounted to $21.34 billion, with India having exported goods worth $12.92 billion and imported goods worth $8.41 billion.