India and the UK will begin the process of negotiations for a Free Trade Agreement (FTA) shortly. This was stated by Mr Piyush Goyal, Minister of Commerce and Industry & Railways while addressing the Valedictory Session of the CII@125 Annual Conference in the UK – “A New India-UK Economic Partnership in a New World: Lives, Livelihood & Growth” over a virtual platform today.
According to the Minister, while full-fledged FTA negotiations take a long time, it has been agreed that India and the UK would look at an early harvest agreement to begin with. The early harvest agreement could take the form of a Preferential Trade Agreement with about 40-50 items of trade interest between the two countries.
He felt that by having such an agreement in place would give the much-needed boost to bilateral trade. He stated that there were several sectors that India and the UK could work together on e.g. gems and jewellery, textiles, healthcare among others.
![New Delhi: Union Finance and Corporate Affairs Minister Piyush Goyal addresses a press conference after chairing a cabinet meeting in New Delhi, on June 27, 2018. (Photo: IANS) by .](https://archive.asianlite.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/12/d380360e8da6947d59ef021fd5e7a55a.jpg)
In terms of supply chains, the Minister stated that the world was now looking at more resilient supply chains and was of the view that the Supply Chain Resilience Initiative provide a good opportunity for India and the UK to work together.
On the economic front, the Minister stated that India was witnessing a rapid recovery. To give a few indicators, he stated that railway freight in the first 13 days of September rose by 12% as compared to the same period last year. Merchandise exports during the second week of September had risen by 10.73% as compared to the same period last year. He stated that the overall mood of Industry in India was very positive and displayed the “can-do” attitude of the Indian Industry.
The Minister highlighted that the government was now working on ramping up internet services and Wi-fi to all villages in the country over the next 1000 days. He stated that India was focusing on becoming self-reliant and Covid-19 had led to the creation of the protective equipment industry in India virtually overnight.