Reserve Bank of India (RBI) Governor Sanjay Malhotra on Friday said the India–UK Free Trade Agreement (FTA) is expected to provide a boost to multiple sectors of the Indian economy, including manufacturing and services.
Speaking at an event in Mumbai, Malhotra said that with multilateralism losing momentum globally, such bilateral agreements are becoming increasingly important for India’s trade strategy.
“The UK FTA is the way forward, because unfortunately, multilateralism appears to have taken a back seat,” Malhotra said, adding that trade negotiations with the United States are also at an advanced stage.
Malhotra noted that India is actively pursuing several other trade agreements, many of which are currently under negotiation.
The RBI Governor’s remarks came a day after Union Commerce and Industry Minister Piyush Goyal said India is expanding its trade relations across geographies, following the signing of the landmark FTA with the UK.
“Very good talks are going on with New Zealand, Oman, Chile, Peru, and the European Union. And on the bilateral trade agreement (BTA), good discussions are also underway with the United States,” Goyal told IANS in London. “I firmly believe that all these negotiations will lead to positive outcomes.”
India and the US recently concluded the fifth round of BTA negotiations in Washington, DC.
The Trade and Economic Partnership Agreement (TEPA) between India and the European Free Trade Association (EFTA) is set to come into effect on October 1. The agreement is projected to generate around one million direct jobs in India.
The India–UK FTA, now officially termed the Comprehensive Economic and Trade Agreement (CETA), is being viewed as a key milestone in India’s global trade policy, with the potential to unlock billions of dollars in trade and investment.
—IANS